Enemy of My Enemy
by missblueeyes63
Summary: Sam and Jules happily married with 6 month old Sadie. Jules will return to work after taking one last trip to the Hat. Sam can't go because he has just taken over as TL on Team Three. Sam says goodbye to his girls at the airport and heads in for his first day as TL. Jules takes one last look at Sam before heading out. Will that be the last time she sees the love of her life?
1. Say 'Bye Bye' To Daddy, Sadie

**Enemy of My Enemy**

* * *

 _ **Summary:**_ _Sam and Jules are happily married with six month old Sadie. Jules is planning on returning to work as Team One TL after taking one last trip to visit with her family in the Hat. Sam cannot go because he has just taken over the Team Lead position on Team Three. Sam says goodbye to his girls at the airport and heads in for his first day as TL of Team Three. Jules takes one last look at Sam before heading out of the security area to the boarding gate. Will that be the last time she sees the love of her life?_

 _ **Setting:**_ _This story starts right after the series ended where they announce Sam is the new Team Lead for Team Three_ _. Although they never indicated Jules role, I made her Team Leader for Team One since Ed became Sergeant._

 _ **AN:**_ _Okay I tried, really tried to write the next chapter of RoMCSB but my muse had other ideas. Here we go with another story. Hopefully my muse will allow me to jump back and forth between these two stories._

 _I do not own Flashpoint or any of the characters from that series. I do own my original characters (OC)._

* * *

 **Say 'Bye Bye' To Daddy, Sadie**

* * *

 _ **Toronto Airport Near Security Screening**_

Sam held Sadie close to his heart. He was going to miss his little one. Sam knew it was only for two weeks. But two weeks was a long time in a six month's old life time. So much changed every week.

He had marveled at each and every change. Her first smile. Jules said it was gas but Sam was certain Sadie was smiling at him. Sadie was his sweet little girl. He would do absolutely anything for her.

Jules said Sadie wrapped him around her finger the moment she was born. Jules was wrong. Sadie had him wrapped around his finger from the moment he knew she was growing in Jules' womb.

He went to every single appointment with Jules. He had a picture of Sadie in his wallet from the very first ultrasound. He also carried a picture of the first time he held her. One of his favorites that was also in his wallet was the very first family photo of the three of them. Jules hated that photo because she said she was all sweaty and gross having just given birth. But to Sam Jules was absolutely beautiful. Because how more beautiful could she look than right after giving birth to their daughter.

Jules could see Sam was lost in his own Sadie world as he held their daughter. She had been talking to him but realized he was not even hearing her. So Jules lightly touched Sam's arm and said "Earth to Sam, come in Sam. Do you copy?"

Sam tore his gaze from Sadie and looked at Jules "Sorry … what did you say?"

Jules smiled and went on her tippy toes to plant a kiss on his cheek. "I said it is only two weeks. We can video call every day when you get off shift."

Sam nodded "Yeah, it won't be the same though." Then tightening his hug a little bit on his precious daughter he inhaled her sweet baby scent and asked with some trepidation "You don't think Sadie will forget me do you?"

Jules caressed the side of Sam's face and said softly "Not in a million years. Sadie and I will never forget you."

Sam reached out with the arm that was not cradling Sadie and pulled Jules into a hug as he kissed her lips gently. When he pulled back he said in a slightly gravelly voice "Two weeks. Only two weeks. No longer, right?"

Jules marveled at her husband. When she had first met him, well not first, not on the log bridge, but first met him with SRU, she would never have thought Sam capable of this tender side. He was just a cocky soldier. Oh how wrong she was. Sam was the most caring and loving man she had ever known.

Her heart was solidly in his care. So was Sadie's. Sam would never do anything to hurt either of them. He was their protector. Even if occasionally that was a bit stifling. Jules loved the man he was and she would never want to change him.

Softly Jules answered "Right, only two weeks. It will fly by. You will be so busy with Team Three that you will barely notice."

"Oh, I'll notice" Sam declared with certainty.

Jules nodded. Yeah, Sam would notice. She glanced at her watch. She had put off leaving for as long as she could. "We gotta go now love."

Sam bent down and kissed Sadie and said "You be good for mommy."

Sadie's eyes flickered open. Her sable brown eyes locked on her daddy's blue eyes. Sadie smiled.

Sam smiled and said "Love ya Sadie."

That was met with happy babbling like Sadie was saying I love you too daddy. At least that is how Sam always interpreted the nonsensical babbles.

Sam reluctantly handed off Sadie to Jules. He kissed them both again and then stood watching as they entered the line to go through the security check point. He waved to them as they finished going through security.

Jules turned just before she and Sadie headed off to the boarding gate. Sam was waving to them. She waved to the love of her life and then lifted little Sadie's arm and waved it at Sam as she said "Say bye bye to daddy Sadie." Then she smiled one last time at Sam and turned around the corner.

He smiled as Jules gently held Sadie's arm up and made her wave at him. His beautiful girls. They were only a few yards away and he already missed them. How the hell was he going to get through the next two weeks with them fifteen hundred miles away?

Sam stood there long after they had disappeared around the corner. Finally, he shook himself out of his maudlin thoughts. He had a new team to whip into shape. As much as he hated to leave Team One he was looking forward to being TL of his own team. Taking Donna's place would be difficult but he was up to the challenge.

SRU had gone through several changes in the past year. The Boss retired and was now Head Instructor at the Academy. Ed was now Team One Sergeant. When Jules returned from maternity leave in one month she would be Team Leader of Team One.

Some things changed but others stayed the same. Sam was now able to move on and let Team One go in a way because he knew even if he was on another team that Jules, Spike, Ed, Wordy, and Greg would always be his family. They would always be there for him.

Sam turned and strode out of the airport completely unaware that he was being watched.


	2. Daddy's Girl, 1st Day, Bunny Gone & SAM!

**Daddy's Girl, 1st Day, Bunny Gone & ****SAM!**

* * *

 _ **Plane Flying to Medicine Hat**_

Jules looked around her with an apologetic look as Sadie continued to fuss. Sadie was certainly a Daddy's girl. As soon as Sadie lost sight of Sam the happy bubbling babbles turned to occasional whimpers. Once they were airborne those whimpers turned into bawling.

Sadie wanted her daddy and she was letting everyone know it, _loudly_. Jules bounced her on her knee, tried singing softly and to distract her with her favorite yellow bunny rabbit. Even the bunny wasn't working and that was usually the last line of defense and worked like a charm.

Sam had seen the yellow bunny rabbit and insisted they get it for Sadie. He said it reminded him of the bunny rabbit Sara had. Sam and Sadie spent hours with that yellow bunny. It was well loved in the past six months.

It made Jules very happy when she caught Sam sitting in the rocking chair telling Sadie stories about Sara as he toyed with the bunny. Often times she would listen in and once she even recorded a video of it wanting to have something special for Sam to remember in future years.

Sam had loved his little sister with his whole heart just as he loved his daughter. It was clearly written on his face as he told Sadie stories of his and Sara's adventures.

That thought sparked an idea. She was definitely running short on options with all the death glares she was getting. Jules pulled out her tablet and pulled up the video she had taken of Sam telling a story of Sara to Sadie.

"Sadie, wanna see daddy?" Jules said softly.

The bawling did not stop. Jules touched the play button and Sam's voice came from the tablet. Sadie stopped bawling and turned to the sound. Jules held up the tablet close to Sadie.

"See Daddy" Jules said in a sing song voice.

Sadie's chubby little hands reached out for the tablet. Jules rocked Sadie gently as she was mesmerized by the video of Sam and his voice.

The woman next to Jules smiled and said "Such Daddy's girl, how cute is that."

Jules smiled and joked "Yes she is. It goes both ways though. I expect Daddy is bawling too right about now."

The woman laughed and said "Mind if I take a picture. My mom will never believe this."

Jules looked at her funny. Who would take a picture of this? Jules replied "I'd rather you not."

The woman sat back and said pleasantly "That's okay. I'm a professional photographer. I forget sometimes that not everyone wants every moment of their lives documented. She is a beautiful little girl. You and your husband are very lucky."

The video ended and Sadie started whimpering again. Jules hit replay before her whimpering could grow beyond that. Sadie calmed again hearing Sam's voice.

Jules turned back to the woman and said "If I have to replay this video the entire flight to keep her happy, I think the rest of the passengers might just want to hear her crying after about ten replays."

The woman laughed "Quite possibly but I'm all for keeping the little one happy. The rest of them can just deal with it. Besides that is a cute story he is telling. Quite inventive, I wouldn't think a brother would dress up for a Queen's tea party."

Jules smiled but didn't share that it was a true story Sam was telling Sadie about and how he would entertain her when their mother was feeling ill. Sam had gone above and beyond as a little boy. Jules could not imagine any of her brothers, not even Aidan, putting up with her dressing them up for a Queen's tea party.

Sadie happily babbled as her chubby fingers swiped all over the tablet as Jules replayed the video countless times until Sadie's little eyes grew heavy and she nodded off. There was a collective very quiet sigh of relief among the passengers around them when Jules did not click play again and Sadie slept nestled in her mother's arms for the remainder of the flight.

Unbeknownst to Jules someone had taken not only pictures of her and Sadie but a short video clip as well.

* * *

 _ **SRU HQ – Locker Room**_

Sam finished dressing. As he stood he saw Ed, Spike, Jude and Sean enter the locker room. Sean, Ed and Spike had some splotches all over their uniforms but Jude was doused head to toe in slick, blackish-brown substance. Sam laughed and said "What happened to you?"

Spike sighed "Subject ran into a used oil collection station. Jude went after him. He got him but only after the subject knocked over a barrel of oil. It looked like we were skating for a bit, none to gracefully mind you. We could've used your speed out there today. Maybe stopped the subject _before_ he got to the oil. Man, this uniform is toast. These stains are never coming out."

Ed grinned as he stripped off his ruined uniform "So Samo first official day as TL. You ready for it?"

"Yeah, as ready as I can be" Sam answered. Then Sam asked "Jude, how you liking your first official day on Team One?"

Jude rolled his eyes "Could be less messy. But other than that, fine and dandy. Thanks for the referral."

"You deserved it" Sam answered.

Sam had talked to Ed, Jules and Spike about Jude's skills. He told them he felt Jude was the best match for the team. They all knew Sam's real purpose in referring Jude was that Jude was in the top four of the snipers that SRU had. Sam was the undisputed top. Ed and Jules switched up two and three constantly and Jude was routinely in fourth in all the quals. They knew that Sam wanted to ensure Jules and the rest of Team One was covered if he could no longer be with them. So they had agreed to Sam's choice.

After Jude headed into the shower area, Sean chuckled a bit and asked "Does this count for hazing Jude. I know he's technically been with SRU longer than me but he is new to Team One. Or are we still gonna prank him like you all pranked me?"

Sam laughed and looked at Sean. That prank was fun. Sean was covered in glitter for the whole shift because they went from hot call to hot call with no opportunity for Sean to change uniforms. When they ended up at a gay bar for their last hot call of the day the subject had laughed so hard seeing Sean all sparkly he had simply dropped the knife and gave up.

He said "Oh that is only a work hazard not a prank. Right Spike?"

Spike grinned mischievously "That's right. We are still definitely pranking Jude. Sam if you need any help with ideas for your new rookie just give me a call."

"Got it covered already. Phil, Tyler and Mike are arranging a little something towards the end of the week to give Lance a few days to settle in first" Sam said with a grin.

Pulling a clean uniform shirt on Spike asked "Jules and Sadie get off okay this morning?"

Sam took a moment to look at his picture of Sadie holding her yellow bunny before closing his locker. That picture made him smile. He turned and answered Spike "Yeah. It's gonna be a long two weeks without them."

"You oughta come over after your shift. We can hang out" Spike offered knowing Sam would be missing Jules and Sadie.

"Thanks but not tonight. Gonna go to the Goose with the team. You can join us if you want" Sam responded.

Spike shook his head and with a grin he said "Nah, don't want to interrupt your team bonding time."

Chuckling at Spike's animated eyebrow waggling that went with his comment Sam said "Okay, well see ya all later. And try to stay clean out there. You know we have an image to protect."

Sam ducked three oil stained shirts that were thrown at him and headed for the briefing room.

* * *

 _ **SRU HQ – Briefing Room**_

Rollie looked up as Sam entered the room. He stood as Sam approached and stuck out his hand. They shook hands as Rollie said "Welcome to the team Sam. I'm really looking forward to working with you. Troy's a bit miffed that I won out and got you instead of Team Four."

Sam grinned and took a seat as he said "Looking forward to it too."

As he waited for the rest of the team to gather Sam leaned back and stared out the window at the restored skyline as he reflected back over the year.

Sam had been surprised when Commander Holleran had given him his choice of teams as SRU reshuffled team members to fill vacancies. As they planned for Jules return and reactivating Team Three the Commander and the Sergeants wanted to configure the teams so that each team had no more than one rookie. Ed and the Commander said he had earned the right to choose which team he wanted to be Team Leader of.

But Sam still felt weird about it. Sam felt it might cause hard feelings if he selected any team other than Three since it was the only team that was truly missing a TL. Donna was the TL of this team before. Sam would not displace any of the other TLs even though secretly he had wanted to work with Troy more than Rollie. But Rollie was good. Between them they would whip Team Three into shape and maybe just knock Team One down a notch or two in the competitions.

It had taken some time to rebuild SRU after the events a year ago. Several officers had left SRU, unable to take the stress anymore. And of course they lost Donna and Jimmy to the explosion and the Boss retired due to his injuries. Jules had been out on maternity leave for a good portion of that time too.

So during the last year the SRU had streamlined and consolidated teams for a several months as everyone regrouped. It meant that everyone had to work extra hours. But they all pulled together as never before. It was good to see. Over the past few months they had selected six new rookies to fill all the empty slots.

Sam had stayed on Team One while Jules was out on maternity leave. But with her coming back both knew that they could not both remain on Team One. But now it was more than just protocol that decided that. Sam and Jules made a personal decision too. With Sadie in the mix they needed to mitigate the risk.

If they were both on the same team and something terrible happened, they could both die and leave Sadie an orphan. Neither wanted that. So being on different teams, although still risky made more sense. That way if one was killed in the line of duty the remaining parent could decide whether to stay with SRU or not after that.

The only real challenge facing them was getting time to spend together as a family with them working different shifts. That was one reason Sam was sad to see Jules and Sadie heading to the Hat for two weeks. After that they would only have two more weeks before Jules was back at work and they had to start juggling hours and becoming passing ships in the night.

Sam was pulled out of his thoughts as the rest of Team Three entered the room for start of shift briefing. His last thought as he looked at his team was that now that Team Three was reactivated, SRU was now back up to six teams of six and each had a rookie.

Rollie started the briefing as he said "Today is the first official shift of Team Three in over a year. Mike, Tyler and Phil, welcome back. I've missed working with you. Welcome Sam. I know you have great plans for this team as TL."

There was drum rolling pounding on the table from Mike, Tyler and Phil. Each was very happy that Sam was the TL. It would be good for the team.

Rollie chuckled at the interruption and Sam just grinned and nodded the acknowledgment and vote of confidence from the guys. This was gonna be a good team Sam happily thought. They should mesh well.

When the drumming died down Rollie said "And last but not least welcome to our rookie Lance. Competition was stiff for the few open slots in SRU. We are glad to have you on board. You are working with a seasoned team so don't be afraid to ask if you have questions. Sam will be your primary trainer but every one of us are here to help you come up to speed quickly."

Then Rollie looked at Sam and asked "Any words of wisdom you want to impart Sam?"

Sam grinned and took a moment to look at the team. It was a good group of guys. The only words that came to his mind were "As the democratically elected leader I get to make autocratic decisions."

The guys all chuckled.

But then Sam added "Sometimes you might not like my decisions but I expect you to follow them in the field. Our lives and the civilians we are sworn to protect depend on that. If you have a beef with any of my decisions or tactics, I welcome discussion in debrief. It will help all of us improve our skills."

Lance looked around at the team and felt a sense of pride. He was picked. It came down to him or his buddy Joseph. It was a tight competition for the very last open spot in SRU. Joseph had skills and was actually a better marksman than him. So Lance was surprised when he got the spot instead of Joseph.

Both of them had come from Quebec when Toronto began the search for replacement SRU officers. Joseph had headed back home after wishing him luck and telling him to keep in touch and let him know if any other positions opened. Joseph wanted to try out again at some point. Lance wished they both got selected.

In fact, when they came to try out they actually thought they would be. Team Three had two open spots as far as they knew. But then it was announced that Sam Braddock was switching from Team One to Team Three as the TL because Jules Callaghan was returning to Team One and would assume the TL position.

Joseph and Lance were both shocked to find out that Sam and Jules were married. The different last names had thrown them off a bit at first. But Lance could see that serving on the same team might be problematic for them; especially since they had a kid.

Rollie stood and said "Okay patrol day. Lance you are with Sam. Mike you are with me and Tyler and Phil team up. Let's go let Toronto know that Team Three is back in business."

Sam stood and headed out with Lance in tow.

Lance looked at Sam with a little sense of awe. Sam was a member of the team that saved the city from all those bombs. Lance also had seen that news coverage regarding him years before. He was looking forward to learning from Sam.

Sam turned and asked Lance "Lancelin, comment êtes-vous familier avec les rues de Toronto? (Lancelin, how familiar are you with the streets of Toronto?)

A surprised look crossed Lance's face. Sam spoke French fluently.

Lance responded happy to speak his first language "J'apprends. Et Lance s'il vous plaît. Seule ma mère me appelle Lancelin. Quand je l'entends, je pense que je suis dans le pétrin. Comment venez-vous de parler si bien le français?"  
(I'm learning. And just Lance please. Only my mom calls me Lancelin. When I hear it I think I'm in trouble. How do you come to speak French so well?)

Sam chuckled and tossed the keys to Lance "Okay, Lance it is. French is a requirement for Special Forces and military Officers. But I picked it up early because my father is into languages. I'm a bit rusty. If you don't mind, we can speak French now and then to keep my skills up. Never know when that might come in handy on the job."

Lance caught the keys and smiled. One more thing to like about this team; he would have someone to speak French with. Lance would not miss Quebec so badly now. He couldn't wait to call Joseph and tell him about his first day and they had not even left the barn as they called the SRU HQ.

As they walked to the SUV Sam asked "You are coming to the Goose tonight aren't you?"

"The Goose?" Lance asked.

"Yeah, it's where we hang out sometimes. First rule to remember, you get shot or injured you buy first round" Sam said.

Lance looked at him skeptically "Isn't that a little backward?"

Sam gave a lopsided grin and said "Yeah, me and my wallet thought that for a long time."

Laughter erupted in their ears. Lance put his hand up to his earpiece looking shocked for a moment.

Sam knew that rookie look. Lance had forgotten they were all wired in together. He said "You get used to that."

Then Sam returned to his previous topic and said "The reason for that rule is that everyone on the team is important and that includes you. We all much prefer everyone goes home unharmed each day. You stay safe today and the drinks are on us as a welcome to the team."

Grinning Lance hopped into the SUV and started it up. Yeah he was gonna like working on this team. Joseph was gonna be a bit envious.

Sam said "Let's see if you can get us to the closet Timmy's. Then we'll get you more familiar with the streets around here."

Lance looked at Sam "Is that a trick? I mean there is one about a block away."

"No trick. It is essential you know where the Timmy's are. We live off of coffee many days. What do you drink?" Sam asked.

"Iced capp. You?" Lance answered and questioned.

Sam answered "Same, unless it is freezing out then hot black coffee, no frills."

The two of them kept up the conversation. Sam was asking questions that would help the team get to know their rookie and establish the beginning basis for friendship. Everyone was benefiting from the answers and began to chime in with their own questions and answers. It was a team building while patrolling.

* * *

 _ **Callaghan Farm**_

Jules dumped the entire travel bag onto the bed. She had searched high and low and it just was gone.

Sadie was inconsolable. The battery died on the tablet and there was no Sam and no yellow bunny rabbit. She must have dropped it on the plane or in the airport. Jules was certain she put it into the bag when they got off the plane. But it was not there.

Jules wanted to pull her hair out.

Cyndi raced in with an armload of stuffed animals and dumped them on the bed around Sadie. She tried to engage her cousin with one of her animals but Sadie wanted nothing to do with any of them. Cyndi looked at Aunt Jules and said "Sorry I tried."

Jules hugged her and said "Thanks. I wish I could find her bunny."

"I'll go check the car again. Maybe it fell under the seat" Cyndi said and raced out.

Picking Sadie up and gently swaying, Jules spoke softly "Hush, hush. Daddy wouldn't want you to cry."

Aidan came in and said "Sorry no chargers that will fit your tablet here. I'll run to the store and get you one. How your cable got broken is odd. It looks like it got sliced on something more than a break cause I saw no frayed or worn spots Jules."

"Thanks for checking Aidan. Hopefully the bunny rabbit is in the car. I just don't understand why Sadie was so upset. It isn't like Sadie hasn't been separated from Sam before. Sam has worked long shifts ever since Sadie was born. So I can't figure out why she is crying so much for him now" Jules said to Aidan.

"You want me to try holding her?" Aidan asked reaching out to Sadie.

Sadie buried herself into Jules' shoulder and bawled louder.

Aidan shrugged and chuckled "Guess not."

Jules ran through a mother's list in her head. She had fed Sadie, she was dry and there was no fever. Sadie was not pulling her legs up like she was gassy or colicky. It was not a pained cry either. It was more a sad lamenting cry of longing if Jules had to describe it.

She was at a loss for why Sadie was so upset. Perhaps it was just being in a new place.

Cyndi raced back in "Sorry Aunt Jules. No luck. Zed even stuck his hands down in all the tiny cervices. No bunny."

Jules looked at the tablet and wished it was charged. But using it on the plane to keep Sadie settled had eaten up all the charge that was left. She should have made sure it was fully charged before leaving the house this morning. But that wouldn't have been a problem if the cable to the charge it was not damaged.

She paced with Sadie as she continued her lamenting wails. It tugged at Jules' heart to hear her little girl cry like this.

There was no help for it. Jules pulled out her phone as a last resort and dialed. She prayed he would be able to answer. It picked up and Jules asked quickly "Can you talk?"

 _[Sam answered the phone worried that Jules was calling during shift. Her voice sounded panicked. That was not like Jules. Sam answered calmly "Just patrolling. What's up Jules?"]_

"Oh thank goodness. I need you to talk to Sadie. Say anything. She won't quit crying and the tablet is dead so I cannot replay your video and I cannot find the bunny rabbit" Jules rambled with a hint of desperation over Sadie's plaintive cries.

 _[Sam said "Put it on speaker."]_

"Okay you are on speaker" Jules said as she juggled Sadie so the phone was near her.

 _["Hey sweetie. It's Daddy. Hush now. Shhhh. Got a smile for Daddy? Got a giggle?" Sam cooed to Sadie in a soft sing-song voice none of the guys on the team had ever heard him use before._

 _As Sadie's cries started to diminish, Sam continued in the same voice "I thought you were gonna be good for Mommy, little one. You wanna show all your uncles what a beautiful smile you have. You are such a pretty little one when you smile. Makes my heart sing when you smile. Your eyes light up just like Sara's eyes did. Although you have beautiful brown ones like your Mommy and Sara had gorgeous green ones. Hush Sadie, hush now and smile for Mommy."_

 _Sam continued to speak softly to Sadie and switched to just baby nonsense he knew would calm Sadie. Sam spoke baby gibberish often to Sadie when he did the early morning feedings before heading off to work. It was his special Sadie time. He could hear her cries diminish and finally stop. Sam heard Jules sigh in relief and Sadie's happy sounds._

" _Sorry Sadie is having a rough time Jules. Did you say her bunny is gone?" Sam asked his voice returning to normal.]_

Holding a calmed Sadie, Jules answered "Yes it is just gone. I lost it somewhere between the plane and Dad's home."

 _["I could go to Charlie's Toy Shoppe and get her another rabbit after shift. I can mail it next day air tomorrow" Sam offered. He hated hearing that Sadie was without her favorite bunny rabbit.]_

"That would be good. Thanks Sam. I should let you go now. Be safe out there. Love ya" Jules said.

 _[Sam grinned and said "Love my girls. I'll call tonight when I'm heading home from the Goose."]_

"I'll be waiting. Thanks again Sam" Jules said then hung up and looked at Sadie and said "Happy now Daddy's girl?"

Sadie babbled happily.

Cyndi smiled and said "I think she said yes."

Jules wrapped her arm around Cyndi's shoulder and said "So, you wanted to show me this new scope you got. Have you had a chance to use it yet?"

They headed out of the room with Cyndi excitedly chatting about her new scope.

* * *

 _ **SRU SUVs**_

Sam hung up and smiled.

Rollie's voice was filled with humor "Who knew you were such a softie Sam."

Sam thought, aw crap his headset was on the whole time. Rookie mistake. He turned and saw Lance silently snickering.

Tyler added "Losing that hard Special Forces soldier exterior huh."

Phil teased "Today is a day of mourning. For today, Sam Braddock, formerly known as Badass Jr., officially became known as Pansyass."

Mike laughed but said "Welcome to the Daddy Club Sam, where the quiver of one little lip and tearful innocent eyes can twist your heart and turn the words from your mouth to gibberish. With six of my own I've got experience in that. I've got your back. Phil and Tyler are just jealous they don't have kids yet."

Sam laughed because there wasn't anything else to do. They would razz him for a long time about this but Sam could take it and it was all in good fun. Besides, he got a chance to talk to Jules and Sadie again today, even if only for a short moment. That alone made him happy and was worth all the teasing he would endure.

After a bit Rollie decided to put a stop to the teasing and suggested "Sam why don't you and Lance go patrol near Charlie's Toy Shoppe. Maybe stop in and check if everything is alright in the store. While you're there you could perhaps snare a rabbit and score more points with the wife by getting the rabbit there one day sooner."

"Rabbit hunting sounds like a plan" Sam said then gave Lance directions to Charlie's.

* * *

 _ **Outside Charlie's Toy Shoppe**_

Sam and Lance headed out of the toy store after a successful rabbit hunt. Sam had snared the very last yellow bunny rabbit. Sam was laughing as Lance finished telling a funny story about his brothers and him hunting wild turkey one year for Thanksgiving. They ended up eating roast beef when they failed to get a single turkey and by the time they got to the store they were sold out of turkeys.

As they got into the SUV, Sam pulled out his phone to look up the nearest next day air mail place. Neither he nor Lance saw the man watching them and taking pictures.

The man watching Sam continued to take pictures of them in the SUV as he muttered over and over "Enemy of my enemy is my enemy."

A group of four teenage boys walked past the man and one turned to the others "That guy is kinda creepy. And isn't the saying enemy of my enemy is my friend?"

Devon said "Yeah and it is creepy that he is taking pictures near a toy store. He could be a perv or something."

The first teen saw the SRU SUV and said "Maybe we should alert those officers. It could be our good deed of the day. Maybe save some kid from being snatched or something."

Overhearing the teens, the man quickly jumped into his car and took off. He knew where Sam would be after work. For now that would be enough.

The teens high-fived each other as the creepy man drove off. One of the teens shouted "Score one for the good guys!"

Joe turned to Devon and asked "So what are going to get Suzie Q for her birthday?"

"Not sure yet, that is why we are here" Devon answered.

Laughing Joe said "I thought it was so we could play with all the toys like we used too. Charlie's is still the coolest."

Devon just chuckled. Joe had changed so much for the better. Ever since that day at the carnival when the guy that saved him and Suzie when the Ferris wheel broke and stopped Joe from hitting Suzie, Joe had changed.

The change continued the day after Joe was caught up in that horrible multiple shooting at Wild Willy's. Joe was now dedicated to achieving at least one good deed a day. He inspired his brothers and many in his high school to adopt that ideal too. It was one way Joe had come up with to try and thwart bullying.

Sam watched a group of teenage boys enter Charlie's. He smiled when they held the door open for a woman and her three small children. Chivalry apparently was not dead yet.

* * *

 _ **The Goose**_

Rollie had bought the first round of drinks for the team in celebration of Sam's and Lance's first day. Phil, Mike and Tyler bought the next rounds. Everyone was happy that today had been a rare good day for SRU. No hot calls and no warrant calls. They had spent the entire shift patrolling and got off on time and headed straight for the Goose. For the past two hours the guys had all enjoyed beers and general talk about sports and such.

Getting up from the table Sam said "I got the last round." He headed for the bar to order and pay since the Goose was very busy tonight and short staffed.

He stood at the bar and waited after he ordered the drinks. Sam and Mike had switched to soda two drinks ago but Sam ordered beer for the rest of the team. As he was about to grab the tray with drinks a man stumbled into him. Sam reached out to catch the man before he fell as he said "Whoa there. I think you might have had enough tonight."

The man swung his arm around Sam's shoulder and slurred "Thanks buddy."

Sam took the man's arm off from around his neck and winced when he felt a scratch.

Another man came up and said "Hey thanks for not letting my buddy fall. I'll get him home safely."

Sam was jostled by several more people as they came up to order drinks. He turned and got the tray and headed back to the table with the guys. The group talked for another hour then started to disperse and head home.

As Rollie stood he asked "You heading home soon Sam? Don't want a tired TL tomorrow."

Sam nodded and said "Yeah in a minute. Just checking for any text messages from Jules. See ya in the morning Rollie."

Rollie stood a moment waiting to see if Sam was heading out. He grinned when he saw Sam smile looking at his phone. Jules must have sent him a photo because he heard Sam say 'such a pretty girl'.

He decided to head out and leave Sam to his privacy. Sometimes Rollie still could not believe that the guy that they had all drawn their guns on his very first day with SRU had actually won Jules' heart. Those two were truly in love and Rollie was happy for them. They made a nice family.

Sam looked at the pictures of Sadie being held by Cyndi. They made him smile and he spent several minutes just staring at Sadie. It had been less than a day but he already missed his little one. He would miss his morning time with her tomorrow before work too.

He sighed and downed the last of his soda. Then Sam rubbed his neck because it felt irritated. He recalled he had felt something scratch him when the man swung his arm around him but didn't think anything of it at the time. But the area was really bothering him now. When he got home he would take a look at it.

Sam rose from the table and the room tilted. He grabbed onto the table to steady himself. When the room righted Sam thought that was odd.

As he headed out of the bar and into the parking lot he grinned again because it was time to call Jules. Sadie should be asleep by now so they should be able to talk a while. He missed Jules too.

* * *

 _ **The Goose Parking Lot**_

Sam had just pressed speed dial to call Jules and was half way to his truck when the world tilted again. It was ringing as Sam's head started spinning. When the phone was answered Sam was in the process of falling to his knees.

"Jules, I … Jules … I … help" Sam got out before he crashed to the ground.

 _["Sam? Sam … talk to me Sam!" Jules urgently called out as she heard noises that sounded like Sam falling._

 _Her breathing became rapid as she tried to calm herself. "Sam. Sam are you okay? Where are you?"_

 _Jules was quiet a moment trying to hear something, anything. She caught the sound of footsteps. Relief flooded Jules. Help was near Sam. She heard what sounded like Sam's phone being picked up._

" _Sam! Sam are you there?" Jules called again as her heart beat at a faster pace.]_

The man looked down at Sam. He picked up Sam's phone and said in a strange voice "Say bye bye to Daddy, Sadie."

 _[Jules yelled "SAM!" and then the line went dead.]_

The man smiled and hung up then proceeded to haul Sam up from the ground. He put him in the back of a car and zip tied his hands and feet. Then he put the phone under the tire and drove away crushing the phone.

He muttered to himself repeatedly "Enemy of my enemy is my enemy."


	3. Sam's In Trouble & Thoughts of Escape

**Sam's In Trouble & Thoughts of Escape**

* * *

 _ **SRU HQ – Dispatcher's Desk**_

Spike was leaning on the dispatcher desk waiting to take Winnie home. He was grinning as he said "So what are you in the mood for tonight Italian or Italian?"

Winnie glanced up at Spike and shook her head with a smile "Spike …"

"What? Okay how about Italian with an Italian" Spike jested.

"Why don't you go bug the guys of Team Four for a bit? I'm off in about fifteen" Winnie said as she reached to answer the direct line to SRU "SRU how may I help you?"

 _["Winnie its Jules."]_

"Hey Jules. How is …"

 _["Winnie, Sam's in trouble. I was on the phone with him. He only said my name and help. I heard him fall. Then someone, some man picked up his phone and said Say bye bye to Daddy Sadie. Winnie his phone is not answering now. I don't know where he was but he said he was going to call me when he was leaving the Goose tonight."]_

Winnie hit the claxon alarm and called out "Team Four hot call. Officer in trouble. It's Sam. Troy I have Jules on the line. Patching you into her."

Spike's face paled. He grabbed a headset and put it on "Jules what's going on?"

Troy sidled up to Spike on the headset too but he let Jules speak to Spike as the team gathered around.

 _["Spike, oh Spike I don't know. I answered the phone. It was Sam. He sounded odd. He only got my name and the word help out."_

 _Jules repeated what she told Winnie as she paced in the family room of the farm house._

 _Patrick, Brayden and Aidan were all looking on anxiously. None of them knew what was going on. Jules had answered a call from Sam and then yelled Sam's name before making a call to what they knew now was SRU HQ.]_

Spike looked at Troy and said "I'm going with you."

Troy said "Grab a vest. Winnie get unis to the Goose."

Winnie responded "Already on their way. Sending EMS too just in case."

Spike said to Jules as he raced to the SUVs with Team Four "We are on are way Jules. I'll call you as soon as I have anything to tell you. I promise."

 _["Spike what the man said. That is exactly what I said to Sadie today at the airport when I had Sadie wave goodbye to Sam after we went through security. How would he know what I said? It cannot be coincidence. It was too specific."]_

Spike jumped into the SUV and stated "I agree with you Jules. You are at your dads. Right?"

 _["Yes" Jules said as she strode purposely toward the room she and Sadie were staying in. Concern peaking as those words rolled in her head.]_

"Lock the doors. I'm sure your dad has hunting rifles. Stay put until we know what is going on. For yours and Sadie's safety stay put please" Spike urged.

Troy was on the phone as well but he was calling Rollie. He needed to know if any of the rest of the team was still at the Goose. He connected with Rollie and said "Are you still at the Goose?"

 _[Rollie answered and said "Nice to talk to you too Troy."]_

"Are you still at the Goose?" Troy stated more urgently.

 _[Hearing the urgency in his voice Rollie said "No I'm at home. Why?"]_

"Any of Team Three still there?" Troy asked next.

 _["Sam was the last one there. I left just before he did. He was still at the table finishing his soda and looking at pictures of Sadie. What's going on?" Rollie asked putting his shoes back on. He could sense something bad._

 _After hearing Troy repeat what Jules shared Rollie said "Shit I'm on my way. I'm call in my team."_

 _Rollie hung up and raced out the door as he started to call his team. Sam was one of their own. If something happened to him they would not sit on the sidelines waiting for answers.]_

* * *

 _ **The Goose – Parking Lot**_

Team Four and Spike arrived to the Goose and found four cruisers with lights flashing cordoning off the parking lot. As Spike exited he was surprised to see Ed striding towards him.

Ed moved directly to Spike "Winnie called me. What do you have so far?"

"Not much. I see Sam's truck" Spike said as he headed for it.

Troy headed for the senior police officer on scene and began to gather details. After just a few moments Troy called out to Ed and Spike "Over here. They found a smashed phone. It looks like it was run over."

The three headed to the area as the rest of Team Four fanned out and started asking questions of the patrons that had been prevented from leaving.

Rollie screeched to a halt and jumped out of his car. He raced to join Troy, Ed and Spike.

They all looked around the area of the broken phone for signs of a struggle. All knew Sam would not go easily. He would fight. Whatever happened he must have been out numbered.

Spike squatted down and snapped a photo of the phone then used his pen to turn it over. On the back was a little yellow bunny sticker. He sucked in a breath.

He stood and said "This is Sam's phone for sure."

Rollie asked "How can you be sure?"

"Cause it has a little yellow bunny sticker on the back. I put it there as a joke but Sam said it reminded him of Sadie so he kept it" Spike shared.

Rollie said "CCTVs. We need to review the security video."

Jarred from Team Four came forward holding a laptop in one hand as his fingers of the other flew on the keyboard "Already on it. Just need the password."

Spike said "Moulsen."

Jarred looked at Spike "How … never mind, okay I'm in."

Ed asked Rollie "When did you leave?"

"About twenty or thirty minutes ago give or take. I wasn't really looking at the clock" Rollie answered.

Spike whipped out his phone and dialed Jules. She picked up immediately and he asked "Jules, what is the timestamp on your call from Sam?"

 _[Jules stood in the center of the room near the portable crib they had set up for Sadie and quickly looked at the call records "10:43. Have you found him? Is he okay?"]_

Spike looked at Jarred "10:43. Hang on Jules. We are reviewing the Goose security camera footage."

Jarred rolled it back to 10:41 and then ran it. The guys all watched Sam exit the Goose. They saw him stagger a bit.

Rollie said "Sam only had two beers and that was in the first hour. He wasn't drunk."

Then they saw Sam rub vigorously at his neck as he looked at his phone. They saw him press the phone and then put it up to his ear as he stopped walking, swayed and put one hand out like he was trying to balance himself. Then he was falling to his knees. They saw Sam crash to the ground and lie still as his phone skittered away from him.

They held their breath as they saw a man in a dark hoodie walk right up to Sam and stare down at him. Then he reached for Sam's phone. It looked like he listened a moment then spoke. He hung up the phone, then picked Sam up off the ground and carried him to a car and shoved him in the backseat.

"My god, Sam must have been drugged" Troy said when they saw the man zip tie Sam's hands and feet and Sam gave no resistance. Then the man put the phone down under the tire and drove off.

Spike asked "Jarred any other angles? We need more to go on than just a white Honda Civic. That is like the most common car. We need the plate or a face, something."

Jarred began working as Phil, Tyler, Mike and Lance arrived. Rollie brought the team up to speed with what they knew so far. Then Team Three, minus their techie Tyler, headed out to help Team Four with interviewing the patrons of the Goose.

Time was of the essence and someone might have seen something that would help them locate Sam or identify the man that took him.

Tyler hovered near Jarred wishing he had a computer to start assisting. Then he quickly called Winnie asking for the command truck. They needed more computer power. He was informed it was on its way and should be there momentarily. Winnie was always thinking on her feet and assisting them before they could even ask.

 _[Jules heard Troy and Spike's comments and asked "Spike what did you see? Where is Sam?"]_

Spike answered "Hang on …" then he handed the phone to Ed and said "It's Jules … I need to … " as he was taking the laptop from Jarred needing to get into the footage himself.

Ed took the phone from Spike so Spike could focus on getting into the rest of the security footage. "Jules it is Ed. We are all working on it. It appears Sam was drugged and abducted from the Goose parking lot. We have the make and model of the car but nothing more than that right now. Spike is going to get on this and see if we can get any images of the man that did this. I know it will be tough but just hold tight and I will call you once we have any lead. Any."

 _["I should fly back there" Jules said.]_

"No. You said the man repeated the exact words you spoke to Sadie in the airport. You and Sadie could be in danger too. You are safer staying right where you are until we figure something out. I'm going to call Sam's dad. This might be related to JTF2 or not but he has resources at his disposal we do not" Ed stated calmly even though he felt nothing close to calm.

 _[Jules paced as worry increased "Find him Ed. Find him fast. Please."]_

Ed pinched the bridge of his nose "It was a good thing you were on the phone with Sam. Whoever took him doesn't have much of a head start. We will find Sam. I promise we will find him."

He then silently prayed he was not making a promise he couldn't keep. Ed handed the phone back to Spike as he pulled out his own phone. He was about to place a call to the General when Lance ran up.

Lance said "I spoke to one patron and he said he saw a man in a dark hoodie hanging outside when he came in around ten. He thought the guy was homeless or something. He had a black beard and long scraggly hair. Other than that he couldn't give any more details."

Mike walked over. He was thoroughly upset. This was bad. Damn. He went directly to Ed who they all naturally assumed would be taking command of the situation.

He reported "I spoke with one woman. She remembers Sam sitting at the table after everyone left. She said she saw him stand up and he swayed a bit. He gripped the table to right himself. But then he seemed fine and he headed out. With I quote 'the most wonderful smile on his face'."

Spike looked up and sighed as the command truck arrived. Now he and Jarred and Tyler could really be effective. One laptop and three techies just wasn't enough. He headed for the command truck with Jarred and Tyler. Now they could tap into the traffic cams and see if they could get a different angle or track the car.

* * *

 _ **General Braddock's Home**_

William sat in his comfortable chair across from Mark enjoying a slow evening at home. William had been regaling Mark with tales of Sadie from when Sam, Jules and Sadie visited last weekend. He was a happy, happy man these days.

Mark grinned at Will. Sam and Will's relationship was everything it should have always been now. "So you say Sam was besotted."

Laughing William said "Oh most definitely. That little girl lights up his eyes like nothing else. Well except for Jules that is."

Both chuckled. It was clear to both that Sam had followed a very Braddock tradition and married for love. It was a love that had to be patient but eventually won out.

Mark said "I had a call from Kimberly today. She said that she, Yvonne, Ann and Connie are seriously considering moving all the families down to Tortola in the British Virgin Islands. She said it was beautiful. They enjoyed a relaxing day at the spa and at the beach."

William nodded "Not happening but I'm so glad that the ladies are enjoying their cruise without us. Next time we need to arrange it to go with them."

Mark snorted "Next time I'm taking my wife alone. Next year will be our forty-fourth wedding anniversary."

"You and Kim have ten years on me and Yvonne. But that sounds like a good idea for a thirty-fourth anniversary trip too. Yvonne deserves to have whatever she wants for an anniversary. That lady has been my rock" William stated.

Mark teased "She certainly deserves an award for putting up with you all these years."

"Hey. I could say the same about you" William retorted enjoying the infrequent banter with his brother.

"You could try but it just wouldn't cut it. You are the undisputed king of stubbornness. But you are learning brother dear. Slowly. But surely" Mark joked.

William whipped a pillow at his brother's head. As it bounced off Mark's head harmlessly, Will laughed "I still got my aim brother dear. Nothing slow about that."

Mark grinned. What an absolute wonderful change he was seeing in his eldest brother. After all these years, Will was really loosening up and displaying his feeling openly to the rest of the family. Oh they knew he loved them, that was a given. But William had rarely ever been playful since they father started training him at a young age for the military. It was like a part of him was shut down.

It was only after he had reconciled with Sam did they begin to see this side of William again. Mark thought of all the lost years and was a little sad. But he focused on the here and now and it was all good.

William and Yvonne loved being grandparents. They doted on Sadie every chance they got. William was spending a greater amount of time in Canada these days too. He was allowing his trusted staff to take on more responsibilities so he could be nearer his wife and family.

Mark could see William was grooming Blaze to hopefully eventually take his place. Mark saw that Tom Sutton and Will had Blaze on a fast track promotion and responsibility wise. Blaze was the right man for the job as far as Mark was concerned.

Then Mark thought about promotion and said "Sam was starting as Team Leader of Team Three today wasn't he?"

William nodded and his face lit with pride "Yes Samuel was. He talked to me about it when he was here. He was a bit worried he was not ready."

Mark snorted again "Not ready? Sam really does not see his leadership capabilities does he?"

"Just humble like his old man. We don't like to toot our own horns" William joked.

But then he said seriously, "No he really doesn't. It is partly what makes him a good leader. He genuinely wants to do a good job and he cares for the men under his command. He's had some fine mentors. Blaze, Ed and Greg have all shown him different ways to lead. I hope that he develops his own unique style and incorporates the best of all three of those."

Mark said "He has you as an example too William. Sam has many of your best qualities and a few of your worst ones too. But that is a son to be proud of. He has touched more lives positively than he will ever know. Sam is a damned fine man."

William smiled "Yes he is. And he and Jules made a beautiful baby girl."

Mark chuckled. William had Grandpa fever and talked about Sadie every chance he got. His segues into Sadie territory were often extremely random and loose. But who could blame him? Sadie was a darling.

William continued as he said "You have to see the latest picture of Sadie with Yvonne. There is a light in Yvonne's eyes I haven't seen in many years."

He then reached for his phone and pulled up a picture of Yvonne holding Sadie who was holding her yellow bunny rabbit and showed it to Mark who had leaned close to look.

Mark's eyes honed in on the bunny and his voice was unsure "That bunny looks familiar. No that's not Sara's. Is it?"

He looked at William with a little surprise. That yellow bunny rabbit was a fixture in Yvonne's sitting room. Did they really pass it down to their first grandchild? Mark didn't think Yvonne could ever part with that bunny.

William shook his head "No. Not Sara's. Sara's bunny is still in its place of honor on the shelf of the keepsakes in her room. I'm surprised Sam found one just like it. I think that is the reason for the light in Yvonne's eyes. She see's something in Sadie that she saw in Sara. A goodness, a pure light."

As they looked at the picture William's phone buzzed and the caller id displayed.

William said with concern entering his voice "Ed Lane is calling me."

Both had a sense of dread. Ed would not be calling them well after 2300 hours at night for good news.

Will answered, "Braddock."

 _[Ed was on his way to the SRU HQ as he made the call. He had waited to call until Spike had started his search of the traffic cams. When no license plate was visible, the man had obscured the plate number, and they lost the car when it moved onto roads without cameras they decided to set up the command post at the barn. They would all work from there until they had a lead to follow since Team One and Three needed to gear up too._

 _When the call was answered Ed said "General Braddock, Sergeant Ed Lane. We have a problem."]_

The formal tone of Ed's voice had William sitting up straight "What happened?"

 _[Not beating around the bush Ed stated facts "Sam was abducted about forty minutes ago. It appears that he was drugged and taken from the parking lot of the Goose as he was on the phone with Jules. She alerted us something was wrong."_

 _"Sir, I need to know if there has been anything on the radar from Sam's military days that might make him a target."]_

William stood and began for his study as he said "Nothing that I know of but let me make some calls. Give me all the details you have so far."

Mark followed William to his study. He wasn't sure what was up yet but he could tell it was bad by the rigid stride and no-nonsense command voice he was now using with Ed.

* * *

 _ **Two Hous Missing**_ _ **–**_ _ **Callaghan Farm**_

Jules had finally sat down after pacing for the past two hours. That was only because she needed to nurse Sadie. As she rocked gently and held Sadie to her she tried to make sense of why this was happening. Who would want to kidnap Sam and for what purpose?

Patrick came forward and placed a mug on the table next to Jules "I brought you some chamomile tea."

Then he put his hand over Jules' hand and lightly squeezed "They will find him. They have the resources of three of Toronto's best SRU teams working to find him."

Aidan added "Spike's a whiz. He will track down that car Jules."

Brayden only paced. He didn't like this one damned bit. Something was niggling at the back of this mind. Then it hit him.

He turned to Aidan "Earlier you said Jules' charger looked like it was sliced. Go get it. I want to see it."

Aidan popped up and raced to get it. He handed to Brayden who looked at it carefully then handed it to his dad "Does that look cut to you?"

Patrick looked at it carefully "Yes, yes it does." He turned to Jules "You said the man repeated the same words you said to Sadie. He had to be close enough to overhear you. And it looks like someone deliberately cut this. Why who knows but …." He trailed off as Aidan left the room quickly.

Aidan bolted from the room then returned a moment later with the tablet as he said "Jules was your tablet on? I'm wondering if someone might have installed spyware or a bug of some sort."

Jules answered "I had to turn it on for security. I think I only put in standby mode instead of turning it off but I cannot be certain. No wait, yes I only put it in standby."

Aidan set the tablet on the table and then went into the study to grab his backpack. He always carried his tools with him. He needed to have a closer look at Jules' tablet.

If it was bugged that could explain how the man knew what she said. The implications were scary though. It would mean that this was premeditated and Jules and Sadie could really be in danger too. It might not just be an attack on Sam.

As Aidan returned and sat down there was a knock at the front door. It startled all of them because it was very late; too late for visitors for sure. Sam had been taken at about ten forty five Toronto time, which was two hours ahead of them. It was now just after eleven here.

Brayden and Aidan immediately picked up the rifles and Patrick withdrew his handgun and held it down at his side in a ready position.

Looking at her brothers and father, Jules said "I don't think trouble would knock."

Brayden looked at Jules "Don't care if it does or not. I'm not putting this down until I know who it is."

He headed to the door as Patrick placed himself between the door and Jules and Sadie. Aidan took a position to the side covering Brayden at the door.

"Who is there?" Brayden called out.

His call was answered by "Anastasia Lyons. General Braddock sent me. I'm here as protection for Jules and Sadie until the unit arrives. They are enroute now and should be here in three hours."

Jules' eyes widened. The General sent protection? Just what the hell was going on?

* * *

 _ **Two Hours Missing –**_ _ **Abandoned Farm in Edville, Ontario – Inside Barn**_

He had made a clean get away. He planned this mission well. He was good at planning. This took a long, long time to plan and he was patient and careful to map everything out. Hallmarks of a good mission was to plan well.

Cutting the engine of the Honda Civic he muttered "Enemy of my enemy is my enemy."

He got out of the car and headed over to the van. He opened the back doors and check the welds on the chains he had installed. He laughed. It was going according to plan. He was good at planning. The Colonel should have realized that and used his skills.

But no. He used him as a damned coffee errand boy. He turned and headed back to the Civic.

Opening the back door of the car he looked down at the enemy of his enemy. Good he was still out cold. He grinned as he dragged Sam out and tossed him on the ground unceremoniously.

He had buffed up over the years so it was easy to pick up his enemy. That was part of his plan too. He needed to be strong to deal with the enemy of his enemy.

Years and years of waiting and planning was finally coming to fruition. He laughed again excited that he was finally going to exact vengeance for all the pain and humiliation he had endure because of Sam. He strode over to the coffee pot he had set up previously.

Perfect temperature. Scalding hot. Just like the Colonel liked. Now for the iced coffee. Like how Sam liked it. He reached into the cooler and filled a cup with ice and poured coffee over the top.

Sam bit the inside of his cheek to stifle the groan. He was in stealth mode. He had woken in the car some time ago to find he was bound tightly with zip ties. He decided that it was in his best interest to stay in stealth mode until he could figure who took him and why if possible. Stifling that groan when he hit the ground was difficult. But he had managed not to give himself away.

His arms ached from being bound behind his back and from lying still for quite some time. By the smells he determined he must be outside the city now in a rural location. He could smell hay and dirt. Dirt mostly, because his face hit the ground first and he was still face down. Sam figured that was gonna leave quite a bruise on his cheek and jaw.

Sam heard footsteps approaching him again. The occasional muttering of 'enemy of my enemy is my enemy' had creeped him out in the car. Whoever this was sounded like he was a few cards short of a full deck.

And he had the saying all wrong. It was enemy of my enemy is my friend. Sam recalled from his military strategy tutoring by Corporal Duffy that it was an ancient proverb that meant two opposing parties can or should work together against a common enemy. The earliest known expression if it was in a 4th century BC Sanskrit treatise on statecraft. If Sam recalled correctly the first English use of it occurred in 1884. It was a concept used in World War II and the Cold War. And it was most certainly in much use in the fight against terrorism in the Middle East.

Sam shoved that bit of trivia to the back and concentrated what he did know. He racked his brain to recall anyone even remotely familiar that he had dealt with that fit what he knew so far, which was not much at all. This man could be anyone. It could be random or directed. Sam turned his thoughts to escaping.

However, the kick to his stomach caught him unaware and as pain coursed through his body those thoughts were interrupted. A groan escaped with the rush of air that was expelled by the force of the kick. Knowing nothing more could be gained by remaining in stealth mode Sam opened his eyes.

It was very dark. But there was some light coming from the interior lights of a car. Sam looked up at the man standing over him as he sucked in a breath.

The man's face was shrouded in the shadows and Sam could not make out any features. He noted the man was dressed all in black including black gloves. The man was holding something in each hand; a cup or something. It was hard to tell in the low light.

So much for fingerprints Sam thought. Sam figured at least at the moment it wasn't his death the man wanted. For whatever reason, the man had gone to great pains to drug him and then take him someplace else. If the man wanted his death he could have killed him already.

Sam ventured "What do you want with me?"

The man tipped a cup the hot coffee and poured it on his enemy's chest "Thought you might like some coffee."

Sam sucked in a breath as the hot liquid burned through his shirt. He rolled out of the way of the stream of hot coffee.

"Oh that's right. You prefer iced coffee" the man said and proceeded to pour the cold coffee over Sam.

Sam did not move this time. The cool liquid was soothing to the burning sensation that the hot coffee caused on his chest. Sam caught a glimpse of the man's face. He had a dark beard and he saw a few strands of dark long hair from under the hoodie.

"Who are you and what do you want with me?" Sam asked trying to keep his voice calm.

His question was met with another swift kick to the stomach. Then the man turned and walked away.

Once Sam got his breath back, he scanned his area looking for a means of escape. With hands and feet bound it would be difficult to do. If only he could manage to loosen the zip ties.

That was near impossible. If he had been conscious he could have managed to tense his muscles as they were bound thus giving him wiggle room when he relaxed. But the binding was very tight. And to boot the man had bound him top of the hand to top of the hand.

This method left his tender undersides of his wrists vulnerable. It was a tactic he had learned in Special Forces for binding prisoners. It made it more difficult and painful for prisoners to break the zip ties.

With his hands positioned that way Sam would not have the leverage needed to break the ties. And if he did manage to create enough force to break them he would cut deeply into the soft tissue and could easily slice deep enough to cause real damage and bleed out if it sliced a vein.

So that left Sam with trying to get his feet free. He looked down and became discouraged. His feet were bound with five different thick zip ties. Breaking one was doable. Breaking five, not so easy but he tried anyway. Sam gave it his best effort as he watched to see if the man returned.

The man had left the little circle of light and Sam could not see him anymore. For ten minutes Sam struggled to break the ties but they held fast.

Finally, Sam stopped to conserve his energy. He needed other options. Sam was just deciding if it would be best if he tried to roll into the darkness and try to find a place to hide or to try to gain his feet and hop as best he could when the man appeared again.

The man muttered "Enemy of my enemy is my enemy. I'm going to enjoy making you feel the pain I felt. Everything my enemy did to me was because of you. You are going to feel the pain I felt a hundred fold."

The man crouched down and grabbed Sam's wrists and threaded a rope between them. He tied it off then stood and started walking.

Sam groaned in pain as his arms were wrenched away from his body and he was dragged across the floor. The pain radiated up and down both shoulders. He was glad when the man stopped. But only for a moment.

The man wrapped the rope around a sturdy wooden support and then tied it to his feet. Then the man began to kick him in earnest. Sam tried as best he could to curl up and protect his stomach and ribs. But the man viciously kicked his back causing him to arch backward.

The onslaught of kicks to his torso and lower body continued until the man was panting and gasping for air.

Ending up on his side when the attack stopped, Sam gazed up at the man and tried to focus through his pain. The man's hoodie had slipped off. Sam saw he had dark long scraggly hair and a beard. Sam had never seen him before. There was nothing familiar about the man.

Sam managed to get out in a pained but steady voice "Who are you and what did I ever do to you?"

The man just scowled. Then he turned and walked away.

Sam lay there in pain using sniper breathing to gain the upper hand on it as he began taking physical assessment. So far nothing felt broken. He was sure his kidneys had taken a few hits with the kicks to the back. He hurt but there was nothing more serious than bruising, for now.

Oh and that coffee burn on his chest. That stung. It would probably blister too but not badly. He burned his hand worse than that with coffee before.

He forced his body to relax as best he could. The trussed up position of his body didn't allow for much. But Sam knew he needed to relax and conserve his strength if he was going to get out of this in one piece.

Sam took his mind to a happy place as he relaxed his muscles. His happy place was sitting in the rocking chair in Sadie's room with his sweet little girl in his arms.

He filled his mind with images of Sadie and Jules as he made a silent promise to do everything in his power to get back to them.

.

* * *

 _ **AN:** Edville is a real place about an hour and forty minutes east of Toronto. Had to pick it when I saw that name. Worked great for the plot too. _

_Dropped some hints to the subject for those that have read other stories - Alpha Injuries Y, for those that might want to go read it._


	4. Tiny Lead, Security, Baby Kevlar & Crazy

**Tiny Lead, Security, Baby Kevlar & Crazy**

* * *

 _ **Six Hours Missing – SRU HQ – Briefing Room**_

Jarred had set up several laptops in the briefing room and set members of their teams searching various sections of the city. It was like looking for a needle in a haystack. Without a license plate it was near impossible.

The only lead they had was that the white Honda Civic had one distinguishing feature. There was a Maple Leafs bumper sticker next to another bumper sticker. The second one was the unique. It was a bright green circle with a brown one in the middle with an image of big foot. The lettering around in the green circle read Hide and Seek Champion.

So everyone was scanning the traffic camera footage looking for that one tiny lead.

An all-points bulletin had been issued for a missing officer and patrolman were actively watching for Honda civics scanning for that bumper sticker. They were told not to approach, only to follow and call it in. SRU would be the only one to approach.

Spike was in contact with Cameo and they were in the process of tapping into military programs that might help locate the vehicle and identify the subject. They had also gotten a partial facial capture from one of the cameras inside the Goose. The capture showed a man in a dark hoodie with a beard and long hair. But it was not enough to run normal facial recognition software on.

After reviewing the security footage from inside the Goose, they now believed Sam was drugged in his last drink. It showed a man stumble into Sam while he was getting the drinks and then be helped away by another man. The bartender was able to provide them with names based on time-stamped footage showing the non drunk man paying by credit card.

They had no idea if the men were involved or just happened to provide an opportune distraction. But Phil, Rollie and Lance were now off to interview those men.

The partial facial capture of their subject came from that incident. While Sam reached out to grab the drunken man and keep him from falling, a man in a dark hoodie appeared to drop something into Sam's ginger ale.

Whoever it was, was definitely targeting Sam if they knew which drink was Sam's. Mike had said both he and Sam switched to sodas after two beers. Mike was drinking root beer and Sam was drinking ginger ale.

Tyler was currently in contact with airport security to gain access to the security tapes. Jules said the man said the exact words she said to Sadie at the airport. They were hoping to find a man in a dark hoodie at the airport. It was a long shot but if they could find a better picture they might just find a lead.

Because right now no one had any clue why Sam was taken.

Winnie entered the room with Peter each carrying several trays of coffee. They had done a Timmy's run as every one needed coffee since most were running on little or no sleep at the moment.

She looked around the room and then approached Spike and handed him a coffee as she asked "How can help?"

Spike took the coffee and looked up with appreciation "Thanks Winnie. I needed this. If you want to help Tyler with the airport footage that would be great. More eyes the better."

Winnie asked "Have you asked for the parking lot footage? They take video of all cars going in and out of the parking garages. You might have better luck finding that unique bumper sticker at the airport. You might get a better facial image if you can track the car back to the parking space."

Spike grinned and said "Great suggestion Winnie I hadn't thought of that."

He wanted to kiss her for that suggestion but he settled for squeezing her hand. He called out to Tyler "Get the parking lot footage too. Starting with two hours before Sam and Jules went to the airport."

"Will do" Tyler called back.

Winnie headed over to where Tyler was set up and pulled up a chair ready to help.

Commander Holleran entered the briefing room and located Ed and Troy. He headed over to them.

He said "I've been in contact with Bradley and Winter. Team Two will be covering Team One and Team Five will cover for Team Three. We've pulled together in the last year and made it work short-manned. I expect that we will all pull together until this situation is resolved. The Chief is sending over a team of investigators to assist too."

"For now Teams One and Three are assigned to this situation. It is your priority and Ed you are taking lead. Anything you need you just ask. I've been in contact with General Braddock as well and he is sending a unit to assist. He has also sent a unit to protect Jules and Sadie. He plans to move them to Ottawa where he can better ensure their safety."

Troy asked "So this is JTF2 related."

Norm shook his head "Not known yet. But they are looking into the possibility. They are reviewing if any of those sent to prison based on the investigation into Sam's service have been released. The General also has his analysts checking if there is any terrorist chatter. It may be something targeting the General for all we know; going after his family. It has happened before, so there is always that possibility."

Ed interjected "Sam's been with SRU for years now. It could be related to any call we have had. Families and friends often hate us when we have to take a lethal action."

Troy added "Or Sam could just be the unlucky target like when that redheaded woman stalked him."

"That is why the Chief is putting man power on this too. At this point we have no idea who took Sam or why. But it is clear it was planned given what the subject said to Jules" Commander Holleran stated.

* * *

 _ **General Braddock's Office**_

William was pacing his office as Mark entered. Looking at his brother Mark wanted to roll back time to earlier; before all the stress entered his brother's face. William was hurting again and there was not a damned thing he could do about it.

Mark said "I've finally gotten a hold of Erik and Ryan and let them know what happened. They will contact the boys. I suggest we say nothing to the ladies right now."

There was a sharp rap on the open door and then Jeff Braddock entered and said "Sir I got word from Zach that he and Mason's unit have arrived in Medicine Hat. They should be to Jules and Sadie in thirty minutes and back in the air within the hour. Blaze's unit just reported they arrived at SRU HQ as well."

General Braddock looked at Jeff and said "Understood. Thank you. Can you send in Bransworth before you head out?"

"Yes Sir" Jeff said crisply and headed out to get Bransworth.

Jeff wished there was more he could do. It was eating him up inside. He had wanted to go with Blaze's unit but he could not duck out on his recruits at this critical point in their training.

He trusted Blaze, Mason, Zach and Winds to do all in their power to help find Sam. But it did not lessen his desire to go help too. At least he had been able to help in arranging the logistics for the units before he had to get back to his recruits.

Jeff was glad that his dad could be with Uncle Will at this time too. Uncle Will looked like he aged twenty years since he saw him at dinner last night. Jeff hoped they would find Sam quickly and they would not have to let Aunt Yvonne know what was happening.

He would hate to see the hurt enter her eyes again. She had been so happy and extremely healthy since Sadie was born. Jeff did not want to see what this might do to her.

William looked at Mark and said "It makes no sense to me Mark. Everyone with a beef with Sam is still in prison or accounted for. Are they targeting me or Sam or Jules?"

Then he paled and called out to his aide "Get me Captain Galloway on the line."

Mark asked "What are you thinking?"

William said "Whoever it is could be going after family. I want protection for our wives on that cruise and for Natalie in Paris too. I'm not taking any chances until I know what the threat is."

His line rang and William picked up. It was Mike and he brought him up to speed and ordered protection for the women. Mike told him he would take care of it immediately and then he would cut his vacation short and head back to the base. William tried to change his mind but Mike would not be budged, he would be there in four hours.

Bransworth knocked on the open doorway and waited.

General Braddock waved him in as he finished up with Galloway. As he hung up he said to Mark "Galloway is driving in from Quebec City. He'll be here in four hours."

Mark nodded. He was glad to hear that. Mike was almost like one of the family now. He was a staple in William's life for so long now. Mike refused to move on and up. He said his life had purpose as the security lead of General Braddock. He was damned good at it too.

He was a bit sad that Mike was cutting short his vacation. It was rare that Mike took them. But he was glad in a way too. There was no one Mark trusted more to keep his brother safe. And Will was right. Until they knew who was pulling the strings it was better to up level the protection of the family. That included his brother.

William turned to Bransworth and asked "Any intel, any chatter, any idea who did this?"

Bransworth saluted quickly then answered "We've had some chatter but nothing that points to something like this Sir. If we had a picture or something to go off of we might be able to come up with something."

The General stated "Contact Major Blain. He just arrived in Toronto. The SRU may have located something by now."

"Yes Sir" Bransworth stated and quickly took his leave.

Mark looked at William and asked the obvious "What are you going to tell Yvonne when security shows up and disrupts their vacation?"

William sighed and looked at Mark "The truth even though it pains me to tell her."

"I'll call Erik and Ryan again. Let them know to spread the word and ensure everyone in the family is instructed to take extra precautions right now" Mark said.

Heading for his coffee pot needing a caffeine fix William replied "That is a good idea."

* * *

 _ **Eight Hours Missing**_ _ **–**_ _ **Callaghan Farm**_

Jules rocked Sadie. She did not want to put her down. After Anastasia arrived, Jules found out that the General was going to move her and Sadie to Ottawa. At first she had balked at that. But Anastasia explained that if someone was targeting her and Sadie that it could put her family in jeopardy too.

That was not something Jules wanted to do. It was bad enough that someone had taken Sam. She would not be able to live with herself if she brought danger to Cyndi or Zed or any of the rest of her family. So she had agreed to go.

Anastasia came into the family room with another cup of tea for Jules. She set it down and said "Your brothers are packing your things. Mason, Zach and the rest of the unit will be here in about thirty minutes."

Jules nodded and said "Thanks."

She picked up the tea and sipped. Then she looked at Anastasia and asked "How is it that you were here so quick?"

Anastasia smiled and said "I'll let you in on a little secret."

Jules smiled for the first time at the look on Anastasia's face.

"I was gonna tell my family first and then of course Sam but you get to be first. I was on vacation here. I've spent all my free time here in fact since that SWAT competition. Mark Vinson asked me to marry him yesterday. I said yes" Anastasia shared.

Jules' mouth dropped open. Then she smiled "I'm so happy for you. From what I know from Sam and my brother Brayden, Mark is a good man. Are you planning on staying with the Special Forces?"

Anastasia nodded "Yes. But the Hat will become my home. Mark fully supports my choice to remain active. What I do is important." Then Anastasia smiled as she looked at Sadie "I'm going to have a daughter soon. Cindi is everything I could have wished for in a child. I'm unable to have children of my own so being able to be Cindi's mom is something I cherish."

Jules reached out a hand and clasped Anastasia's hand "You will be a fantastic mother. Cindi is lucky to have you for a mother. Have you set a date?"

"Not yet. We were actually discussing it when I got the General's call. I really want Sam to attend the wedding so it will depend" Anastasia said softly.

Jules forced a positive note "I trust the SRU to find Sam. Sam is going to be so happy to hear you found someone to love and who loves you."

Brayden and Aidan entered the family room and Brayden said "All packed. Do you want to get a quick shower before you have to leave Jules?"

Anastasia offered "I'll hold Sadie for you if you want too."

Jules felt gross having showered over twenty-four hours ago and been awake just as long. A shower would help revive her a bit too. Jules nodded and handed off Sadie to Anastasia.

As Jules was heading to the bathroom Bayleigh said "I'll have something whipped up in no time for everyone to eat before you have to go. I'll make breakfast burritos in case you need to take them along with you."

Jules hugged Bayleigh and said "Thank you. I wish I could have stayed but it is safer this way. I don't want any harm to come to you all."

Bayleigh said "We know Jules. Just know that we will all be praying for Sam. God will keep him safe and return him to you and Sadie. I have faith."

When Jules was in the shower Aidan asked Anastasia "How do you think the man knew what Jules said? We found no bug and no spyware on her tablet or in any of her belongings."

Gently swaying and enjoying the feel of holding a six month old Anastasia answered "It points to there being a secondary person. That is one of the reasons the General wants Jules and Sadie in Ottawa. The cut cord and maybe even the missing bunny, although that might just be lost, also indicate a second person. If there are two, there might be more. When we leave you need to keep your eyes open."

Patrick roused from the chair having heard Anastasia. He had not intended to fall asleep but he was getting older and after his heart attack he tended to tire more easily. He had resisted going to bed outright though when Jules suggested he do so.

He stood and said "We will keep our eyes open. Here let me hold my granddaughter for a bit before she has to go."

Anastasia handed Sadie off to Patrick and watched as the older gentleman's eyes misted with tears.

Patrick gently held Sadie as he resumed his seat. He rocked slowly for some time then spoke softly to his sleeping granddaughter "Sadie my sweet. You are so loved and so special. I know you will grow into a strong and capable woman just like your mother. When this is all over my sweet one I will come and visit you. Your mommy and all your daddy's friends will keep you safe now."

He gently stroked her downy fine brunette hair. Patrick thought that she looked so much like Jules at this age. It saddened him to think that Sadie might have to grow up without Sam. From everything he had witnessed on his visits over the past few months Sam was an awesome father.

Then he thought about Jules and what this might do to her to lose Sam. It would be so unfair. They were just starting out. Their wedding day had been blown to hell, literally. Jules nearly lost Sam on their wedding day. A little smile crossed his face as he recalled Jules laying down the law to Sam a few days later once everyone knew that Greg would survive.

Sam had stood there and took everything Jules had to say without ever flinching. When Jules had finally vented everything Sam had simply pulled her into his arms and held her close. It was amazing to witness that his daughter, his strong willed daughter melted into Sam's arms. Jules allowed Sam to be her support completely as she broke down and cried.

Patrick could see that Sam understood that her anger had not been at him but at everything that had happened and he responded with only love and concern for Jules. The thing that most affected Jules that day was the little boy she had found dead on the sidewalk. Sam held her as she cried for that little boy.

He looked up when he heard Jules enter the room. She had showered quickly. Her hair was damp and pulled back into a ponytail. He smiled at Jules and said "I love you so much Jules. You and Sadie stay safe. Call me if you can. I don't know the security protocols that the General will use but I know he will keep you two safe."

Jules went to her father and sat on the arm of the chair. She wrapped her arm around his shoulders and said "I'll call if I can. When Sam is back home maybe you can come visit us."

Patrick nodded then looked down at Sadie "She looks so much like you did at this age. I hope she grows up to be just like her mom." He turned to Jules "Because her mother is a beautiful, strong woman that I love very much."

He put his hand on Jules knee and said "You need anything, anything at all, you call me. I don't care what time of day or night it is. You call me."

Jules leaned down and kissed her dad's cheek "I will." She wiped the wetness from her eyes and looked at the door when there was a knock.

Anastasia went to the door and peeked out. She opened the door and Zach and Mason entered the house.

Zach beat Mason to Jules and wrapped her in a hug. He stepped back and asked "How are you holding up Jules?"

She answered "As well as can be expected."

Then she was wrapped in a hug by Mason. She was completely engulfed and it made her laugh.

When he let her go Mason said "I give you my word, your daughter will be safe in my care. I will not allow anything bad happen to Sadie or to you."

Jules reached up and cupped Mason's serious face. She understood the bond between Mason and Sam. Mason was a caretaker and a gentle giant unless you were hurting someone he cared about. Then he was the fiercest warrior you would ever face.

She said "I know. I trust you with our lives as Sam trusts you. When they find him, Sam will thank you."

Mason responded "Blondie will not need to thank me. He is my brother."

Bayleigh asked "Do you have time to eat something before you go? Breakfast is almost ready. If not I can pack it to go for you."

Mason looked at Bayleigh and smiled "I'd never pass up one of your meals. We have time. They need to refuel the plane anyways." Then he said "Most my unit is on the perimeter though. Packing something for them would be much appreciated if it is not too much trouble."

Bayleigh asked "How many men?"

Zach answered "Four."

"Not a problem. I'll have it ready in a jiffy" Bayleigh stated and turned to go back to the kitchen.

Brayden started toward the kitchen following he and said "I'll give you hand Bayleigh."

Aidan popped up and headed to the kitchen to help out too.

Mason turned back to Jules and said "The ride is not gonna be comfortable. The most secure way is military transport. I also brought you body armor and the General insisted I make you wear it until we are airborne as a precaution. I tend to be in agreement so no arguments."

He dropped his pack and pulled it out. Then he pulled out a funny looking thing.

Jules was touched by the concern of all of them. She asked "What is that?"

Mason grinned "It is a little something I rigged up. A body armor carrier of sorts for little Sadie."

He held it up and said "We can line it with one of her blankets and then she will be snug and safe."

Zach was chuckling "I helped. In fact, all the guys helped rig it up on the way here. You should have heard the arguments on the best way to create it. Everyone wants Sadie protected."

Touched to the core that they would do this for Sadie, Jules finally found her voice "Thank you."

Mason said softly "Jules no thank you is necessary. Little Sadie and you are as dear to me as Blondie."

Patrick grinned broadly as Jules continued to stare at the contraption. The look on her face was priceless. He couldn't help saying "Sadie wearing Kevlar at six months. If that's not foreshadowing for her future I don't what else to say."

Jules looked at her dad and finally laughed at what he was suggesting. Such a change she had seen in her dad since they started to reconcile. Their relationship was getting better every time they saw one another.

Then she looked back at Mason and said "Sam is not gonna believe me when I tell him you made baby Kevlar for Sadie."

The guys joined in laughter too. Jules' positive vibe that Sam would be found and found alive lightened their hearts a bit. They all knew Jules and Sam had a connection and if she was positive then so would they.

It took them twenty minutes to eat and to get Sadie wrapped up in her Kevlar cradle thingy and to say some tearful quick goodbyes with promises to call as soon as anything was known. Then Jules, Sadie, Anastasia and the unit headed out to the airfield.

* * *

 _ **Nine Hours Missing**_ _ **–**_ _ **Abandoned Farm in Edville, Ontario – Inside Barn**_

Sam woke with a start. He looked around and could see daylight streaming in through broken slates of a barn. He saw a car and a van from his position tied to the post. Sam wondered what time it was. He wished he could look at his watch.

But tied as he was that was not possible. His muscles were cramped and stiff and he was thirsty. His mouth felt cottony. It might be a result of whatever he was drugged with.

Sam began to wonder how he was drugged. The scratch on his neck could have introduced something. But from what he recalled of the man that had taken him he did not look like the guy he had kept from falling at the bar. Nor did he look like the buddy that came and took him off his hands.

Reflecting back on the night Sam tried to recall if he had seen anyone in the bar wearing a hoodie. It had been so crowded last night. He had been jostled several times getting the drinks.

Then a thought occurred to him. What if the drunken man was just a distraction so someone else could drug his drink? Even though he had only seen one man so far didn't mean there were not more. There was a car and a van. That could indicate more people.

Sam tried to slowly move his body to release the cramping muscle. It hurt worse this morning. It always hurt worse several hours later.

A small groan escaped as he rolled to relieve his pressure on one side. Sam held very still when he heard a door open then close. Someone was coming.

Sam saw a man walking towards him. He was right. It was more than one. This man was clean shaven with a high and tight military cut. He was wearing a military uniform. Shit. This was not good.

He racked his brain trying to place the man as he watched him pour some coffee into a mug. Was it someone he knew? He looked vaguely familiar but he could not quite get it.

The man poured the coffee and then turned to his enemy's enemy. He strode over with military precise steps and movements. He stopped when he got to his enemy and said "Good morning Master Corporal Braddock. Did you sleep well? It is 0900. I was up and ready by 0700 but I let you sleep in because you are the son of a General and thus afforded favors."

Sam asked in a dry voice "Who are you?"

"Me? You want to know who I am? Don't you know me?" he stated with anger in his voice.

"Should I?" Sam asked.

The man became agitated and muttered "Enemy of my enemy is my enemy."

Sam registered the voice from last night. This was not a different man this was the same one. He had changed his looked. Crap. That did not bode well. He glanced at the van. Sam knew that this was not his final destination.

He realized that his final destination would involve much pain and his death if he could not figure a way out of this. The man standing in front of him was clearly demented and fixated on him for some reason.

Sam asked "Who is your enemy?"

A sick smile crossed his face as he said "Your enemy is my enemy. He was a sick man. He caused so much pain. He caused me so much pain but I was not his enemy. He was my enemy though."

His face changed and he said in a weird off key voice "Can I get you some coffee? I'm a good coffee errand boy. That's all I was ever used for."

Sam stared at the man. He could not place it but he had to know him. My enemy. My enemy. Sam repeated in his head. His only enemy was … no. No. No. Two names popped in his head Qasim and Plouffe. Both were sick men that caused so much pain. Both were dead though. Many years dead.

"Who are you and what do you want?" Sam asked again.

His question resulted in the man throwing the coffee in his face. Luckily it was not scalding. It was only room temperature which meant the coffee pot had been off.

"You should know me. You should know me" ranted the man.

Then he began pacing and muttering "Always invisible. Never taken seriously. I could have planned missions. But no. Coffee, coffee, coffee. I know maps and topology. If he had only noticed me. Then my enemy couldn't have gotten me. Couldn't have hurt me. Over and over and over."

He stopped and screamed at Sam "You should know me. I brought you coffee."

Sam only stared. The man was completely off his rocker. Shit this was not good. He tried to use his negotiation skills knowing at the outset it would be a crap shoot because the man was unstable to say the least.

"If you brought me coffee, then you are right I should know you. Maybe you can help me out here. I'd really like to know your name. I'd like to thank you for bringing me coffee" Sam tried.

In his mind he thought that sucked Braddock. No way in hell this man is gonna respond to that.

"You got him killed. If you would have let me help plan the mission he wouldn't be dead" the man responded.

Then man dropped to the ground and cried "He died because I had to get coffee. My enemy, my enemy hurt me because he died. I couldn't get away. I didn't want too. He made me. He seemed nice. But he wasn't. He was a snake. He used me. Again and again and again. I screamed, he laughed. Pain so much pain."

At the broken sobs of the man Sam became confused. What the hell happened to this man?

Sam tried again "Who hurt you? Maybe I can help stop him from hurting you anymore."

A switch flipped and the man's eyes turned ice as he stood up "You can't help me now. My enemy is dead. You are my enemy's enemy. This is all your fault. If he didn't hate you he would have never hurt me. I can't hurt him. So I'm gonna hurt you. You are gonna know my pain."

Then he started kicking Sam with a vengeance.

There was nothing Sam could do to protect himself from the onslaught of kicks. He only hoped the man didn't do real damage and tired quickly.

As he kicked Sam, Yawls roared "You should know my name. I brought you iced coffee, twice that night. The Colonel required scalding coffee. Yankee drank iced coffee. You got Yankee killed. My enemy hated you. He made me talk. Plouffe made me talk. Then he hurt me. Over and over. I should have gotten to plan missions."

Sam's mind was working and processing everything the man was saying as his body recoiled in pain from the endless kicks. The Colonel, Yankee, Plouffe. So Plouffe was this man's enemy.

Aw shit. Will Plouffe's reign of terror never end?

With the Colonel, Yankee, mission and coffee rolling in his head Sam was trying to place the man.

Sam was close, so close to recalling who the man was when a kick to his head took him into darkness.

.

* * *

 _ **AN:** Ages for the guest that posted in the review. I suck at math; I was off by one year for their anniversaries, fixed it._  
 _\- William 62, Yvonne 59 (married at 29/26, currently 33 years married)_  
 _\- Mark 61, Kim 61 (married at 19/19, currently 43 years married)_  
 _\- Erik is 59, Ann 59 (married at 18/18, currently 42 years married)_  
 _\- Ryan 57, Connie 57 (married at 16/16, currently 42 years married)_  
 _\- Sam is 33, Jules is 36 (I made her one year younger than cannon)_  
 _\- Scott 42 (Laura 33, twins 4), Adam 42, Jeff 36, Zach 28, Kyle 26_  
 _\- Greg 49, Ed 43, Wordy, 40, Spike 34, Winnie 28_  
 _\- Blaze 46, Winds 46, Mason 40, Jim 38_  
 _\- Patrick 67, Brayden 44 (Cyndi 7, Zed 5), Keagan 42, Finley 40, Aidan 37_


	5. Putty, Sleep, Threats, Grandpa's Story &

**Putty, Sleep, Threats, Grandpa's Story & Jules' First Priority**

* * *

 _ **Ten Hours Missing – Military Plane Enroute to Ottawa**_

Mason knew that Jules would not have slept since this whole ordeal began. When they had boarded the plane Mason had been pleased to see that one of the flight crew had successfully followed through on his last minute instructions. The crew member had secured a cot so it would not move and had run to a local store close to the airport and acquired a pillow and two soft blankets.

Jules was currently sleeping on the cot that had been set up for her. Mason knew that she needed rest in order to take care of Sadie. Right here and right now Jules and Sadie were safe from harm. He and Zach had finally convinced her that she should sleep and they would entertain Sadie when she woke up.

He was now sitting close to the cot in case the plane hit any turbulence. Mason would not let Jules be thrown to the floor. He was glad when Jules finally agreed to rest after she saw that Sadie happily babbled at both him and Zach.

Mason assured Jules that he was quite versed in changing diapers, having taken care of Lachlann and assured her not to give it another thought. Jules was out like a light very quickly once her head hit the pillow.

He grinned watching three of his unit on the floor with Sadie.

Zach had spread out the second blanket on the floor of the transport when Sadie got restless being held. He wanted to let her stretch out on the floor on the blanket. Mason watched as Zach, Pawn and Apollo acted like idiots making all kinds of funny faces and sounds for Sadie. Sadie rewarded them all with bubbles of laughter.

Mason took out his phone and took a short video. Blondie would want to see how his daughter reduced grown, battle hardened men to nothing but putty.

He sighed as a fragment of his memory intruded. It made him sad. His sweet Caitrìona would have been one now if she had lived. He would have liked to see Sadie and Caitrìona become friends. But that was not to be.

That was one reason he had insisted that his unit be assigned as protection for Sadie and Jules. Blondie had saved his Lachlann. It was time to repay part of that debt and ensure that Blondie's daughter and wife stayed safe and alive. Mason knew he would take a bullet for either of them without question.

Mason also knew, but would not give voice too, that if anything did happen to Blondie that he would be there for Jules and Sadie. Sadie would know her father through him and the rest of the guys. Just as he kept Cala's memory alive for Lachlann he would do the same for Sadie if the worst happened. But Mason also knew that the General, Spike, Ed, Blaze and Winds would move heaven and earth to find Blondie. He just hoped it was in time.

* * *

 _ **SRU HQ – Briefing Room**_

Troy looked at Ed and Spike and all of Team Three. They were dead on their feet. Most had been awake well over twenty-four hours.

He walked over to Ed and said "You all need to get some rest." At the glare from Ed, Troy said "My guys will stay on it and the investigators that the Chief is adding to the case will be in shortly. I'm not saying you leave. Maybe just head into conference room three and grab a few hours shut-eye. You won't do Sam any good if you are not fit to go when we locate him."

Ed rationally comprehended that but irrationally he did not want to leave. Not that he was a control freak; he just didn't want to let up. They needed to find Sam. He was about to object when he took a good look at Spike. Spike's eyes were completely blood shot from staring at the computer for countless hours. Spike had not moved from his spot since they got here.

He nodded to Troy "I'll take Spike with me. Inform me the moment you have the smallest thing though."

Greg and Wordy came up behind Ed without him seeing and Greg stated "No we will inform you if we find something actionable. You and Spike need some sleep."

Ed whipped around at Greg's voice. He was a sight for sore eyes. "Greg!" Then he saw Wordy "Wordy! You heard."

Wordy put a hand on Ed's shoulder "Yeah, Sophie called Shel. Shel called me. I called the Boss. We are here to help. My Sergeant has assigned me to this case. Take Spike and get some rest now."

Camden Bradley entered the briefing room with his team, fresh and ready for the day. He strode over and added his voice to the plea "Ed until a hot call comes in my team will be working here. I'll make sure Rollie's team takes a break too."

Ed nodded and headed over to Spike "Buddy let's go get a rest."

Spike reluctantly peeled his eyes off the screen. That was the last thing he wanted to do. They had not found the car at the airport nor any man wearing a hoodie. There had been no hits on the APB either.

"I can't take a break. I have to find him. He can't have disappeared into thin air" Spike stated in a stressed and tired voice.

Greg came over "Spike. As tired as you are you are bound to miss something. Let someone with rested eyes take over. Let me and Wordy take over for you."

Spike looked at Greg and said "I can't Boss. I gotta find him."

Wordy physically lifted Spike from the chair "Come on buddy, a few hours of rest. That is all we are asking. Sam would expect you to take care of yourself."

Spike looked at Wordy and then his eyes fell on Winnie. She was exhausted. He said "Get Winnie too."

Then Spike let Wordy pull him from the room and towards conference room three as Greg went to get Winnie and do that same thing. In the conference room Ed pushed the table to the wall to make room and the room quickly started filling up with Team Three members.

Leah, Sean and Jude had come in for start of shift only to learn what transpired last night. Leah assured Ed that she and the guys would keep working while the other rested.

Greg returned to the briefing room and went straight to Blaze. His unit was set up in part of the room. He noticed that Winds, Cameo, Russ, Daniel and a new guy he had not met were lined up on the wall apparently sleeping. A small smile lit his face as he recalled all the places they found Sam napping over the years. Special Forces men could literally sleep anywhere.

He took a seat next to Blaze and said "You gonna get some sleep too?"

Blaze tore his eyes off the screen that was running some program and looked at Greg "Sorta doing that with my eyes open. Nothing really to look at. Cameo set up a program to be our eyes here. A whiz algorithm or something that can search the traffic cameras much faster than we can looking for that bumper sticker. He also tapped it into the real-time military satellites. If that car is out there and on the move we will find it."

"If that is the case then I suggest you actually sleep like the rest of your unit" Greg suggested.

Blaze turned and looked at his unit.

Winds' eyes opened "I told him the same thing an hour ago."

"I thought you were sleeping Winds" Blaze said with slight gruffness.

Winds stretched "You know damned well that neither of us will sleep until Blondie is found. I just sat down here so you wouldn't grouse at me."

Greg chuckled.

Blaze shook his head. Yeah he knew that. So he said "Then why don't you go make yourself useful and grab us some coffee."

Winds' pushed up from the ground and offered "Greg can I get you one too?"

"Sure, thanks" Greg said.

* * *

 _ **Fourteen Hours Missing – Moving Van**_

Sam woke slowly but registered something was different. He felt a motion. Then he realized his hands were no longer bound behind his back. They were stretched above his head and bound together. He was lying on his back on something metal and his legs were bent.

Suppressing the groan that wanted out Sam ventured to crack his eyes open just enough to peek. He opened them all the way when he determined he was in the back of a panel van. It had no windows. There was light coming in from in front of him.

Carefully because his entire body felt like one huge bruise he turned his head. He saw that the back of the van was separated from the cab by a metal partition sort of like a chain link fence but with thicker bands of metal. His hands were zip tied but a chain was looped through them and the chain was attached through the holes in the metal partition.

Sam could see his captor in the driver's seat. He listened and heard his captor muttering to himself again. Most of what he was saying Sam could not make out.

They were clearly on the move though. How long he was out for Sam had no clue. But from the hunger pangs in his stomach and the dryness of his mouth he figured it had to be at least a few hours.

Sam slowly shifted his head and gazed down towards his feet. They were still bound with the five zip ties but another chain was looped between his feet and secured to a metal connector welded to the floor of the van. Escape from this was unlikely.

He was contemplating the likelihood of rescue. Now that the man had changed his look completely and switched vehicles it would be near impossible to track him. Sam wondered where the captor was taking him. Would he have an opportunity to escape?

Sam turned his head back to the man in time to see the man put a phone up to his ear and ask "How was the flight to Medicine Hat?"

That sent chills down Sam's spine. He could only hear one side of the conversation but what he did hear sparked fear and anger.

The man was quiet a moment then said "Good. You weren't seen were you?" Then he listened. "Okay. You got what you were supposed to right?"

Laughing as he listened for a bit the man responded "I can't wait to show that to my enemy. You sent it as planned?" There was a short pause then he said "Yeah I'm almost there."

It was silent for a longer time the man spoke again "No. Not yet. I want him to suffer first like I suffered. He will do as I tell him when he sees what you sent. Yes he is gonna die. I know he ruined it for your friend. You can let your friend know soon, I promise. Your friend will get his rightful spot very soon. But I have to make him feel pain before I kill him."

Irritation was in his voice after Yawls listened one last time and then responded "No, don't go to the farm too much possibility of being seen. Stick with the mission plan. She planned to go to the gun range today with that little brat niece. Go wait there. I'm sure she will be distracted at some point and you can do it then. She's just an infant, won't take much of it. It will look like she just died in her sleep. Babies die of SIDS all the time."

Sam was reeling inside and he yelled "YOU BASTARD! YOU BETTER NOT HARM MY DAUGHTER. SHE IS AN INNOCENT. SHE HAS DONE NOTHING TO HURT YOU. LEAVE MY DAUGHTER ALONE!"

Yawls glanced back "Oh so you are awake. I was innocent once too. But that didn't stop me from getting hurt. It will be fast. She will just fall asleep. She won't scream in pain like I did. She won't bleed. She won't even cry. She won't feel dirty and used."

Then he laughed and said "But you will feel all the pain when your sweet Sadie girl is stone cold dead. Then after Sadie it will be Jules' turn. But hers won't be a quiet death. I want you to see her pain knowing it is all your fault."

Sam struggled uselessly against the chains as he yelled "I'm going to kill you, you son of a bitch. You're a dead man if you touch them."

Yawls just laughed "Oh I'm not gonna touch them but my associate, that is another matter." Revenge felt so good.

* * *

 _ **Sixteen Hours Missing**_ _ **–**_ _ **General Braddock's Home – Library**_

Jules was holding Sadie as she got fussy. They had arrived an hour ago and then been told the General would be home shortly. Sadie had been a good girl for Zach and Mason and the other guys. Jules smiled when Mason showed her the video he had taken of the guys on the plane.

She paced with Sadie as Mason and Zach sat quietly. The rest of the unit was around the perimeter along with Mike's security unit. Jules thought that no one would touch either of them in this house. It relaxed her a lot to know that Sadie was safe from whatever threat there might be lurking out there.

Jules had talked to the Boss after arriving and found that they still had not located the car. That was disheartening. She had hoped Sam would be found and safe by the time she landed in Ottawa. But apparently that was not the case.

She heard the front door open and rapid strides of two sets of boots. Jules turned as the General and Mark entered the room.

William headed directly to Jules and hugged her and Sadie.

When the General released her Jules asked "Any news?"

Sadie had different ideas and started bawling. Loudly. Jules bounced her gently and said "I'm sorry. She has been like this since yesterday. The only thing that calms her is Sam's voice. I wish I had her yellow bunny but it was lost yesterday. Sam was going to send a new one today. But …"

William reached out his arms and said in a soft voice that Jules had never heard "Let me try."

Jules thought it sounded a lot like the voice Sam used to speak to Sadie when he was telling stories. She let the General take Sadie into his arms.

William smiled and said quietly "Hush, hush. Grandpa is here. You are missing Daddy. I'm missing him too. You lost your bunny. Grandpa knows how to fix that sweetie."

He turned and left the room with Sadie. Jules stared a moment watching him leave. Sadie had started to quiet down a bit as the General continued to talk to her. Jules pulled herself out of her state of shock seeing and hearing that and looked to Mark.

"Where is he going?" She asked.

Mark grinned "Probably to Yvonne's sitting room. Why don't you follow and find out. We'll be down here."

Jules followed. She saw the General at the top of the stairs. He was indeed going to the sitting room. Jules had been in there a few times when she recovered here with Sam and Spike. It was Sara's old room if she recalled what Sam told her.

She hurried up the stairs.

* * *

 _ **General Braddock's Home – Yvonne's Sitting Room**_

William kept up his dialog of nonsense as he headed up the stairs. Yvonne would completely agree with what he was going to do. He entered the room and headed to the keepsake shelf.

Jules got to the doorway of the room and halted without going in. The General was at a shelf and reaching for something. Jules sucked in a breath seeing what he picked up. It was nearly identical to her yellow bunny.

William picked up Sara's yellow bunny and said to Sadie "See I have a bunny just like yours. This was Sara's bunny rabbit."

Sadie's cries stopped and she reached out for the bunny. William put it in her tiny hands. The bunny was immediately brought to Sadie's mouth by her chubby little fists.

"Sara would want you to have it. Has your Daddy told you about Sara? Sara was your Daddy's little sister. My little girl. She was beautiful and sweet just like you Sadie" William said as he moved to Yvonne's favorite chair.

He sat down and continued in a soft voice as Sadie stared up at him mesmerized by his voice. "Sara and Samuel, that's your Daddy. They were the best friends besides being brother and sister. They were inseparable. Your Daddy took such good care of Sara. He always played with her and made sure she was happy."

"But Sara was no slouch either. She took care of _her_ Sammy as she called him. It was always her Sammy, like Samuel belonged to no one else. She hated to share him but she did. When her Sammy was eight he got hurt at the park. He had taken Sara there to play."

"He was up on the jungle gym when Sara called him. He turned to see what she wanted. Some big boys were playing football and threw the football. It headed right for your Daddy but he didn't see it because he turned to look at Sara."

"Well the football hit your Daddy and knocked him off the jungle gym. The big boys started laughing at your Daddy when he started to cry because it hurt real badly. Sara marched up to them and yelled at them that they were not being nice."

"Then she raced over to her Sammy. Well your Daddy had bumped his head and got a big bad owie. When Sara saw your Daddy's owie she gave him her bunny to hold onto to make him feel better. He was trying to be a big boy and not cry so he took the bunny and held on tight."

"The big boys came over and teased your Daddy and said he was a baby with a bunny. Well Sara didn't like that very much at all. No one could be mean to her Sammy."

"Now, I have to tell you Sadie that it is better to use your words to solve problems. But I was secretly very proud of my Sara. Boy, did she let those big boys have it. She went wild swinging and hitting them. She was like a little wild cat."

"She was screaming and causing such a ruckus that some mommies overheard and came running. Little Sara was only six and she bested three big boys. She head butted one boy in the stomach, gave another one a fat lip and she hit the last boy right where it really hurts boys. Your Mommy and Daddy will show you where that is when you are old enough. Those boys didn't know what to do except to run away from her."

"By the time the mommies got to Sara and your Daddy, Sara was back to your Daddy checking if he was okay. He had such a big owie he felt dizzy and sick to his tummy. Your Daddy has had a lot of those types of owies. He held on tightly to Sara's bunny the whole time the doctor stitched him up because the bunny made him feel better."

"So sweetie, I want you to hold onto Sara's bunny. It will make you feel better until your Daddy is back. Okay sweetie. Your Daddy will be back. Your Daddy has lots of people looking for him. Lots of people that will defend him as fiercely as Sara did that day. So you hold that bunny now and feel better."

William finished and was graced with a beautiful smile and happy babbling from Sadie. He hugged his granddaughter close and prayed that Samuel would be found soon.

He softly said "If you are watching over your brother Sara, keep him safe, we are looking for him. Keep him safe until we can find him."

Then he looked at Sadie and said "Grandpa has lots of stories about your Daddy. Want to hear more?"

Jules' wiped tears from her eyes and slowly backed out of the room leaving Sadie in the caring arms of her grandfather.

Sadie babbled as she clutched the yellow bunny and William said "I'll take that as a yes. So when your Aunt Natalie was born Grandpa almost got in trouble with Grandma because he lost your Daddy. Your Daddy wanted a brother or a puppy."

William continued to tell how Sam was up a tree and how Yvonne talked to him when he came down. Then he started another story.

* * *

 _ **General Braddock's Home – Sam's Old Room**_

Jules had wandered to the next room which she knew was Sam's old room. Yvonne had never redecorated it.

She stood in the room and looked for what she knew would be in here. She headed to the shelf and picked of a love worn blue dog. Jules went to Sam's old bed and curled up hugging the dog to her heart.

The tears flowed freely as she worried about Sam. Would they really find him in time?

Jules was so worried about Sam. She knew the statistics. The longer a person was gone the less likely they would find them or find them alive. The first forty eight hours were the most critical. She wished there was something she could be doing to help.

But Sadie was her first priority. She and Sam had discussed scenarios. This was nothing like they had discussed. Mostly they were along the line of one of them getting killed in the line of duty.

Jules knew for a fact that if Sam was ever killed in the line of duty she would quit SRU no questions asked. She would never subject Sadie to the possibility of becoming an orphan. Even though they both had family galore she and Sam were in agreement that Sadie needed to have at least one of them.

Neither had any clue what they would do if they had to give up SRU. But both knew without a doubt that the Boss, Ed, Spike, Wordy and the rest of their extended families would be there to support them as they made a transition to something else.

She clutched the dog closer as the sobs started. She could not hold them in any longer. She cried "Where are you Sam? Where are you?"

The bed sagged under the weight of someone rather large. Jules turned and saw Mason's kind face.

Mason pulled Jules into his arms and simply held her offering comfort as she cried.


	6. Mind Game, Smart Cindi & Go Find Our Guy

**Mind Game, Smart Cindi & Go Find Our Guy**

* * *

 ** _Sixteen Hours Missing_** ** _–_** ** _Van in Parking Lot – Montreal, Quebec_**

After driving for four hours, Yawls pulled the van into a parking lot of a little used strip mall in Montreal that contained a post office. It was all part of his plan. He planned every detail.

His skills were good and he should have been recognized for them. But all he ever got was coffee. He had planned every detail down to the nth degree.

He had loved hearing his enemy scream and yell in vain and clank those chains. There was no way he could get out of those. He had watched on the little monitor screen he had rigged up in front. His enemy had worn himself out yelling and struggling for over an hour. He was lying very quietly now.

Yawls turned and said "You will be very quiet and do as I tell you or I will call my associate and Jules will be hurt right now."

Sam had struggled until he could not struggle any more. It was stupid to do. He knew that. But he was unable to control his emotions in that moment.

What he heard had hit him harder than he had been kicked. All he could think was that his baby girl could be dead right now and he wouldn't know it.

That rocked him to the core and ripped his heart to shreds. He had raged and raged that the bastard was going to pay for that with his life.

When his body finally had no more energy he had lain still, completely exhausted and devastated. He had started to grieve for his sweet baby girl. But then something had slammed the door shut on that thought.

That's when his mind began to work on a more rational basis.

His first rational thought was that this man was insane, bat shit crazy. Rationally, it was possible the man was playing mind games with him. It was possible that there was no real associate.

But Sam couldn't take that chance. He decided he had to appear docile and whipped and do his damnedest not to react emotionally to anything else. It might be his only chance to escape and warn Jules.

"Where are we?" Sam asked in a dry dejected voice exuding defeat that he partly felt.

Yawls loved hearing that voice. It was vindication to hear it from someone else. He was not a weak man if he could get someone else to sound like that.

He knew he sounded like that when Plouffe had his way with him and made him do things that were disgusting and painful. When he had to say 'yes Sir, thank you Sir, again Sir', as he was repeatedly violated with all manner of things.

Yawl's hands twitched and shook as he muttered "enemy of my enemy is my enemy."

Sam watched the weirdness of the man. It was like his mind kept shifting. It was downright scary on some level because the man was unpredictable. Sam moved slightly and the chain clanked against the metal partition.

Yawls blinked at the noise and looked at Sam. His eyes narrowed and he said "I just got to pick up a little package. But before I do I need to show you something my associate sent me. I think you are going to like it. It will show you I know how to plan missions. I covered every detail. Every single one."

He picked up his phone and pulled up the video Melpomene sent him. He pressed play and turned it towards Sam. "Now she is a sweet little thing."

Sam stared in horror as a video of Jules and Sadie on the plane was played. Jules was holding the tablet and he could hear his voice telling Sadie the story of Queen's tea party. Sadie was holding her yellow bunny.

He could not help the tears that slipped out as much as he tried. His girls. His sweet Sadie girl.

His voice was choked with emotion "Don't hurt them. Please don't hurt them."

Laughter met his words. Yawls laughed long and hard.

Then he said in a hard voice "You stay quiet while I'm gone and I'll call my associate and tell her to hold off killing her. But only if you are as quiet as a mouse. Is your daughter's life worth you being quiet?" Yawls asked.

Sam closed his eyes so he would not glare at the hateful man as he answered "Yes."

"Good. I'll be back in a few. But I will know if you make a sound. Look up and to your left and you will see a camera. It has sound too. I have it programed to my phone. You make one sound, one little sound and I will call my associate and it is bye bye Sadie" Yawls said.

Sam didn't bother opening his eyes. He had seen the camera before. Sam laid still. Partly so he did not make a single sound but also because he was in so much pain. He was pretty sure he had at least one cracked rib from the second kicking attack. His early outburst had not helped matters at all.

He tried to slow his rapidly beating heart with sniper breathing. He had never been in this position before. He never had someone threatening his child or his wife. Sure Jules was at risk at work. But the team was there. They all knew the risks and they mitigated them as much as they could.

But this; this was just sick. This bastard was threatening to kill an innocent six month old baby for no other reason than Plouffe had hurt him somehow. Sam tried again to think about who it was.

The man kept spouting off about planning missions. He mentioned Yankee and the Colonel. He said it was his fault Yankee was killed. Because Plouffe hated him.

That is where this insane dude was wrong. Plouffe didn't hate him. Plouffe couldn't give a rat's ass about him. It was his dad that Plouffe hated. He was only a tool to hurt his dad. He had been the innocent then, like Sadie and Jules were now.

Sam's heart broke. He now understood the pain his dad felt when he found out what Plouffe was doing to him. This was different but the same in a way. He was his father's child and Plouffe had hurt him to hurt his dad. Much like this bastard was threatening to hurt Sadie.

He had to keep his wits about him now. Sam could not afford to be emotional. Showing emotion was what this bastard wanted. No, not emotion. Pain. His goal was to inflict pain. Sam knew he had already given away that he could be manipulated by threats to Sadie and Jules.

Sam was kicking himself mentally for not thinking before reacting.

It was time to pull out all his training; both Special Forces and SRU. He needed to use his Special Forces training to identify the weak spots and opportunities to escape or facilitate communication that would result in protecting Jules and Sadie and rescuing him. He needed to think back on all the skills from SRU to try and get into this crazy bastard's head if possible.

The first thing he needed to change to do that was to think 'subject' rather than 'crazy bastard'. He so wanted to think 'bastard' though. With every fiber of his being he wanted to choke the man out for threatening his daughter and wife.

This was going to be hard. This was emotional blackmail at the very basic level. It was not a new concept. Coerce compliance by instilling fear that people who were important to him would be harmed. That was blackmail 101.

If Sam could place the guy maybe he might be able to understand what Plouffe did to him and why. If he could do that maybe he had a chance, a slim one, but a chance nonetheless of connecting with him.

Perhaps he could change the guy's thought process from enemy of my enemy is my enemy back to the original. God he wished the Boss was here to negotiate his release. Profiling and getting into a subject's mind was not his thing. That was Jules' and Sarge's thing.

Give him a damned building to breach and he could do it. This not so much. Dealing with the human mind was a crap shoot for him.

Sam's mind wandered back to one hot call that personified the differences between Jules and him. He recalled it was the first time he had asked to be Sarge's second so he could get field training in negotiation.

Sarge had looked at Ed and said 'Okay you go figure out to get into the impossible building and I'll go talk to a killer with nothing to lose'.

That call Ed got into the impossible building. But Sarge was not able to get through to George. Sam had to take the Scorpio shot that day when George turned the gun on the Sarge. That was his first experience of suicide by cop. There had been several more since then. But that was a first for him that day.

He saw Sarge try so hard and fail that day. They had reviewed the transcripts together that day. Sam learned a lesson that day. Not everyone wants to be saved. Actually two. Even the best, and Sarge was the best, didn't get to win every time.

As the door opened Sam hoped that he could win here. Sadie's and Jules' lives might just depend on him getting into this subject's head.

Yawls turned on the truck and pulled out. He was pissed off. He called Melpomene outside the post office and she told him that Jules and Sadie were long gone. She had no idea where they were.

His mission was not going according to plan. He had planned every detail. Every single detail. They should still be there leaning on family since Sam was gone.

The rage inside him grew as he drove. His enemy was gonna pay for this. He was gonna pay big time for messing up his perfect mission.

* * *

 ** _Eighteen Hours Missing_** ** _–_** ** _Gun Range Shop – Medicine Hat_**

Melpomene entered the gun range shop. She was mad at Yawls. He had not timed the abduction well and then he spoke to Jules on the phone. That was stupid. He gave away the abduction way before it would have been noticed. Now she had to try and find out where Jules went.

The plan depended on him killing Sam. But Yawls was unpredictable. She had used his border line personality disorder to her advantage but she could not trust that he would follow through with it.

It was damned good coincidence that her ward just happened to have a history with with someone on the SRU team. She had manipulated and fed Yawls' beliefs. She helped instill an intense hatred for Sam making him believe that Sam was his enemy and responsible for what Plouffe had done to him. It was easy to redirect all his anger at Plouffe to Sam and make him think he had been angry at Sam for years.

Yawls was easy to manipulate like many of her wards. But Yawls was also unstable. She made Yawls believe this was all his plan. But really it was her plan. She wanted Sam dead so that a spot opened up on team three.

But Yawls wanted to torture him first. Melpomene was fine with that but so much could go wrong. So she had devised a two pronged approach in case Yawls got caught or did not follow through. While Yawls took care of Sam she would target Jules.

Again she fed into Yawls beliefs and made him see that he could cause Sam pain, lots of it, if he threatened to kill Sadie and Jules. Melpomene never intended to kill Sadie; that was never in her plan.

But she wanted to find Jules and then kill her in case Yawls failed to kill Sam. If Yawls did kill Sam then there would be two open spots in SRU. Her boyfriend was sure to get selected for one of the spots if there were two open. It would increase his chances.

Quebec City sucked and she hated her job with a passion. She wanted to move to Toronto in the worst way. She was sure she could get Joseph to propose to her once they got away from his annoying family that kept butting into their relationship. Especially his know it all, nosy, mother.

God she was such a bitch. Always telling Joseph he could do better than her. She had heard the bitch once telling Joseph that he deserved a woman that would treat him better. That if Melpomene really loved him that she would not berate and yell at him like she did.

What did that bitch know? Joseph liked it when she told him how to improve. When they were married then she would not have to work. She could spend her days in leisure just shopping and looking good.

She would not have to take care of needy, annoying people anymore. God she hated being a residential daycare attendant for wards of the Provence. Most of them were developmental disabled but Yawls was in her care because of his mental breakdown in the Army. He got the services of a residential attendant as part of his military discharge.

Melpomene hatched her plan a month ago when Lance got selected instead of Joseph for the last open spot in SRU. How the hell that happened, Melpomene could not fathom. It pissed her off when Joseph had simply accepted it and wished Lance the best.

Sometimes Joseph was such a wimp, he needed a strong woman in his life to ensure he got what he deserved. Joseph should have gotten that position not Lance. Joseph was better than Lance in every way.

So she was gonna make sure that Joseph got a position in SRU even if she had to keep killing SRU team members until that happened. That way they could move to Toronto and start their life together without the annoying bitch bothering them.

Melpomene toyed with a package of ear protection as she scanned around. She would have to find that brat niece and strike up a conversation and see if she could find out where Jules went. The brat was supposed to be here after school today.

She knew that because they had tapped into the baby monitor at the Braddock home for the past three weeks. They were aware of all their plans. The trip to Medicine Hat came at the perfect time for them to put their plan into action. But now Jules and Sadie were gone and Melpomene did not know where. But she was gonna find out.

Cindi bounded into the gun range shop with her school backpack on. She spotted her dad and gave him a huge grin. She was on cloud nine. Dad told her yesterday that he and Anastasia were going to get married. And today Cyndi and she were gonna get to shoot with Jules Callaghan. Well Jules Braddock now.

She skipped up to the counter all bright smiles and asked "So when are Cyndi and Jules getting here?"

Mark did not find out until after Cindi left for school that Cyndi and Jules would not be coming today. Anastasia had called him to say that she was headed back to Ottawa for something urgent and told him in confidence what had happened to Sam and that Jules and Sadie were being taken to Ottawa for their safety.

Brayden had kept Cyndi home from school too. As did Keagan keep his boys home. The Callaghan's were playing it safe not knowing exactly what was happening.

Mark said "Sorry Cindi, Mr. Callaghan called and Cyndi stayed home from school today. He said it would have to be another day."

Cindi pouted "Darn it I was really looking forward to shooting with Jules. Is Cyndi sick?"

Mark did not want to lie to Cindi but she was too young for the truth. So he opted for "Mr. Callaghan did not say. Just that Cyndi stayed home and they had to cancel today. I'm sorry Princess. I know you were looking forward to it."

Cindi sighed "Well, then maybe Anastasia can shoot with me today."

"Sorry again. Anastasia got called back to Ottawa early this morning. You know she has an important job that takes her away at a moment's notice sometimes" Mark responded.

The pout returned to Cindi's face "Double Darn."

Mark smiled and said "I picked up some golf balls. You want to shoot a round of golf with me instead?"

The bright smile returned "Yeah that would be cool."

"Okay Princess. If you want to come around back here and watch the shop a moment I'll go set it up. Then I'll send Amber back here in a moment to watch the shop while we shoot" Mark said and then grabbed his cane and the golf balls then slowly made his way to the range.

Cindi hopped up on the stool behind the counter and took off her backpack. She might as well get her homework done while Dad set up the golf balls. She started on her math homework first. It was always the easiest. The numbers just appeared in her head somehow without much effort.

Melpomene had overheard the conversation and waited until the father left. Then she approached the counter. "Hello, Cindi right?"

Cindi looked up at the woman. She didn't know her and had never seen her. Cindi took in every single detail like her dad taught her to do when she met someone for the first time.

The woman was about five seven, the display near the counter helped with that because it marked off heights. She had black curly hair that rested on her shoulders, brown eyes that were set apart more than normal and light ebony skin. Her lips were full and painted in a bright red lipstick.

She saw that the woman's hands had long fake nails painted in bright red nail polish. Cindi knew they were fake because her teacher had fake nails like that. Useless Cindi thought because you couldn't load a clip with nails like that. She liked the way Anastasia kept her nails. Short but nicely manicured; that was functional.

The woman was wearing black jeans and a red jacket with a maple leaf emblazoned on the left shoulder. She wasn't pretty but she wasn't ugly either. But she did make Cindi wary for some reason.

Cindi had learned from Anastasia how to respond if someone she didn't know called her by her name. Anastasia said little girls needed to be aware of their world because there were many people out there that liked to do bad things to girls. Anastasia said better safe than sorry.

So Cindi finally said "Hello, my father will be back in a moment if you need help." She did not acknowledge that her name was in fact Cindi.

Melpomene forged ahead "Sorry I overheard the conversation. That's too bad that Jules is not here. I was planning on meeting her here. Maybe you could tell me when Jules plans to come by and I can stop by again."

Cindi thought the woman must think she was an idiot little kid. If she was planning on meeting Jules here why would she need her to tell her when Jules would be here. Shouldn't she just call Jules?

She hopped off the stool and played along like a dumb kid, which she wasn't, "Hang on. I'll just go ask my Daddy. He might know when Jules is coming by. Just a second."

Cindi smiled, turned and skipped out the door like she hadn't a care in the world. Once the door closed behind her, Cindi raced directly to her Dad.

* * *

 ** _Gun Range Area – Medicine Hat_**

Cindi found her dad taping strings to the golf balls. She said quickly "Dad there is a strange woman in the shop. She was asking about Jules. But it was odd. She said she was meeting her here but she asked me when Jules was coming. That's odd right?"

Mark looked at his daughter. She was sharp as a tack. Anastasia's work in breaking child sex slavery rings made her want to instill awareness in Cindi so she would never be a victim. He had approved.

He stood and said "Yes that is odd. I want you to stay here and wait for Amber. She will be back from the store room in a moment."

Amber French heard her name as she entered the range area after getting some targets from the store room. She walked directly to Mr. Vinson to find out what was up. She loved working here. Mr. Vinson gave her free shooting lessons.

After talking with Jules Callaghan after she was raped by Bruce Nealy she had gotten a lot of help to recover. She had not felt safe so in one of her letters to Jules she had shared that. Jules made arrangements with her parents and Mr. Vinson to teach her to shoot.

She was getting pretty good now and loved to shoot with Cindi and Anastasia. And she just loved working here. She felt safe here. Mr. Vinson was ex-Special Forces and the nicest man besides her Dad that she knew.

As Amber approached she said "What's up?"

Cindi put her hand in Amber's and said with a little trepidation "I'm supposed to stay here with you. There is a stranger out front asking stupid questions about Jules. She makes me uncomfortable."

Amber smiled at the incredibly smart nine year old girl who seemed older than her years in many ways. But she was also just a sweet little girl who looked a little scared right now.

Mark said "You girls stay here until I come back. I don't want you to come into the shop. You hear me?"

They both nodded.

Amber wondered what was going on as Mr. Vinson looked concerned. He had this intense look in his eyes she had never seen before. She got the feeling that was how he might have looked when he was a soldier and he was facing an enemy.

As Mr. Vinson limped toward the shop Amber said to distract Cindi "Let's finish taping the string to the golf balls. That way your dad can hang them when he comes back."

Cindi nodded and sat down to tape the string to them. She looked at the door to the shop and wondered why that woman was asking about Jules. But soon she was distracted and forgot about it as Amber started telling her about the rifle her father was thinking of buying her.

* * *

 ** _Gun Range Shop – Medicine Hat_**

Mark entered the shop and looked around. It was empty. There was no woman here. His gut started to churn.

He headed directly to his office. As he sat down he turned to the security cameras. He rolled back the video and watched. He saw the woman lurking and clearly listening to him and Cindi. Then he saw her talking to Cindi when he left. Shortly after Cindi left the woman left the shop.

Mark switch to the outdoor feed and saw as the woman kicked the tire of a rental car in apparent anger.

He pulled out his phone and dialed Anastasia. When she picked up he said "Anastasia, it might be nothing but then again it might be something." Mark went on to describe everything to her.

 _[Anastasia said "Send that video to SRU HQ and to me. I will make a call to General Braddock and Captain Black. This might be the break we are looking for."]_

Mark sat back watching the video as it played again and said "Give me the details of where to send it and I'll do it right now."

 _[Anastasia gave him the details then said "Cindi is gonna make a darned good operative. She is so observant for someone so young. Tell her good job at being aware of her surroundings for me."]_

"Will do. I'll get this video sent right now. I hope this helps find Sam and is not just a wild goose chase" Mark said as he saved the video files preparing to send them.

* * *

 ** _Nineteen Hours Missing_** ** _–_** ** _SRU HQ – Briefing Room_**

Spike and Cameo were running the woman's face from the video through all databases. They still had not gotten a hit on the car. They were hoping this was the break they needed.

Ed looked at Greg and said "We need a lead. Any lead."

Greg nodded and said "We've scanned everything. It is like that car just disappeared."

Lance was watching on section of monitors, as were most of the others. It was all they could do at the moment. His phone rang and he looked at the caller id, it was Joseph.

He answered and said "Joseph Je ne peux pas parler maintenant. Je suis impliqué dans une affaire. Est-ce important?"  
(Joseph I cannot talk right now. I'm involved in a case. Is it important?)

 _[Joseph answered "Oui mon ami, il est. J'étais en séance d'information et nous avons été mis au courant d'un officier SRU manquant. Ils ont partagé les informations BOLO avec nous. Vous êtes à la recherche d'un blanc Honda Civic avec un autocollant de feuilles d'érable et un vert qui dit Hide and Seek Champion sur elle. Correct?"]_

"Oui nous sommes. Pourquoi?"  
(Yes we are. Why?) Lance asked.

 _["Mon amie a une Honda Civic blanche avec des autocollants comme ça" Joseph responded in disbelief but knowing that he had to call Lance.]_

Lance switch to English and put his phone on speaker as he waved to Ed to get his attention. Lance said into the phone "Joseph I need you to repeat what you just told me in English. I have you on speaker. The rest of the task force can hear you."

Everyone gathered around.

 _[Joseph repeated in English the relevant parts of what he told his friend Lance. He said "I was just in briefing and we were made aware of a missing SRU officer. They shared the BOLO information with us. You are looking for a white Honda Civic with a maple leaf's sticker and a green one that says Hide and Seek Champion on it. My girlfriend has a white Honda Civic with stickers just like that."]_

Lance asked "Didn't you say she was taking a vacation?"

 _["Yes. She left last week. Said she was going to visit family but she never said where. I was happy she was going. We needed a break. She's been getting weirder lately. When I told her four weeks ago that you got the SRU position and not me, well she flew off the handle. She ranted at me for over an hour. Seriously thinking of breaking it off with her. I just don't need her brand of crazy in my life" Joseph stated.]_

Ed asked "What is her name?"

 _[Joseph replied "Melpomene Tocci. She lives in Quebec City. I can give you her address."]_

Greg asked "Can you describe her?"

Spike stated "No need Boss. The woman in the video is Melpomene Tocci. I have positive id and her address from her driver's license."

Cameo had input the face in his program for the airport and his computer pinged with a result. He stated "I have her in footage from the Toronto airport. She is standing next to a man in a dark hoodie. His back is to the camera. But it is the same hoodie as the man who took Sam was wearing. I'm gonna track them through the airport to see if I can get an image of his face."

Ed said "Joseph thanks for calling. We will be in touch with your Sergeant. We need you to execute a search of Melpomene's home. We need to know who took Sam and how this Melpomene is involved. There might be a clue in her place as to where Sam was taken."

 _[Joseph stated "Whatever I can do to help, let me know. I hope you find Constable Braddock."_

 _He was cringing inside. How could he not see that she was completely wacko? Christ, why was she involved? He should have followed his gut and broke it off with her six months ago when she started getting weird._

 _Joseph said to Lance "Call me later buddy and let me know what happens. I'm sorry if Mel did this. Truly sorry."]_

Lance sighed, "Not your fault buddy. Thanks for calling. I'll be in touch later."

Blaze looked at Ed and said "This may have crossed Provence lines. If so it will be Federal jurisdiction. I'll inform the General of the current situation. He can smooth things for us to operate in Quebec if necessary."

Cameo called out loudly and excitedly "I have an image. Sent it to the General's analyst and I'm running it through facial recognition now but it will likely take some time to get a hit."

Wordy, Spike and Winds all crowded around Cameo's computer. They all looked at the man. He had a wild look in his eyes that was scary. He looked unstable.

Winds thought the guy looked somewhat familiar but he couldn't place it. It was bugging him. As he was staring at the man with a manic look in his eyes his phone rang. He looked at the id and it was a number from Ottawa HQ.

He answered "Simons."

 _[Bransworth quickly stated "Winds, I tried Blaze's line but it is busy. This is too important to wait. I just got the image that Cameo sent. I know who he is. He looks different now, much different with the long hair and beard. But I never forget a face."]_

Winds asked "Who is it?"

 _[Staring at the photo Bransworth said "That is Private Yawls. You remember him? He's the one that flipped out and shot Plouffe in the Colonel's office. I trained him as my replacement. I remember those weird eyes. He always had a chip on his shoulder and thought getting coffee was beneath him."]_

Winds let out a low whistle as Bransworth's words brought back memory of that day. He said "Thanks that is a big help. Let the General know. I'll let the SRU and Blaze know."

 _[Bransworth said "Will do. I hope you find Sam fast. That guy is definitely_ _one coffee bean short of a cappuccino_ _."]_

Winds hung up and looked at Blaze with disbelief. He saw Blaze had finished his call to the General so he said "Blaze you are not gonna believe who this man is."

Blaze turned and strode to computer and looked. The man seemed very familiar. He looked at Winds.

Winds said "Bransworth called. He identified him. It's Private Yawls. Remember him?"

"Aw shit not Yawls" Blaze said with disbelief. Why would Yawls be going after Blondie?

Wordy asked "Who is Yawls?"

"Winds tell them. I have to call the General. We need to find out what happened to Yawls after his breakdown" Blaze said as he strode away to call the General.

Winds looked at the guys and said "That is Private Yawls. Or should I say the former Private Yawls. He was an aide in Colonel Sutton's office for about a year. The man went completely off his rocker one day."

He sighed and said "Part of me wishes he was successful knowing what I do now about what Major Plouffe did to Blondie. But Yawls here, well one day he lost it in the Colonel's office. He drew his weapon on Major Plouffe and tried to kill him. Actually got a shot off and hit the Major in the arm."

"Blaze and I were in the Colonel's office planning a mission when it happened. The guy was ranting and raving but making no sense. Most of what he was saying was unintelligible. The few things that were clear were coffee, pain and planning. Blaze is the one that disarmed Yawls. He was hauled off by the MPs and we never saw him again."

Winds finished "We assumed it was PTSD or something. Kandahar can do that to a person."

Spike asked "Did he know Sam?"

Winds shrugged "Probably not personally. Blondie was rarely in the Colonel's office; maybe only a handful of times. Blondie was normally in the field."

"I can only remember one time for certain that Blondie was in the Colonel's office. It was when he helped plan the mission with Yankee; the one where Yankee died. Blondie nearly died in that mission too."

"How the hell he survived a direct artillery assault is a mystery. There was nothing left of that building after the 155mm artillery shells blasted the area but he was alive. Somehow Blondie survived."

Ed's mouth dropped "Sam survived a 155mm artillery blast?"

Winds arched a brow and said "Oops I said too much. You didn't hear that from me."

Wordy smiled but deadpanned "Hear what?"

Spike made a zipping motion with his hand over his mouth.

Ed looked at the other SRU members that had overheard as he said seriously "We heard nothing other than what Winds said about Yawls. Got it."

Everyone nodded.

Then Ed turned to Spike and instructed "Spike, try to locate the last known location for Yawls."

"On it" Spike said and sat back down at his computer.

He was thinking that surviving a direct artillery assault was a very Samtastic thing to do. If Sam could survive that, he would survive this. Now that they knew who took him they could begin to figure out where they took him. They would get Sam back.

Tyler called out from his seat "Now that we know Tocci hails from Quebec I expanded the search radius and just got a hit on the car from a highway camera near Cobourg as it went through a construction zone."

"How long ago?" Greg asked.

"Around midnight last night. A little over an hour after Sam was taken" Tyler replied.

Ed paced "They could be anywhere by now."

Rollie offered "But they were headed in the direction of Quebec. We should alert all local police forces in that direction to be on the lookout for the vehicle."

Winnie called out from the dispatch desk "Ed I have an officer from Edville on the line. They just found the car at an abandoned farm. The owner of the property was there to check on things to get it ready to sell and found the car in the barn."

Ed strode to Winnie's desk "Patch him through." When Winnie indicated he was patched though to the headset Ed stated "This is Sergeant Lane. You found the car?"

 _[Officer Beacon was standing in the barn and replied "Yes. The car is here but your constable is not. I called as soon as I found it. There are tracks for another vehicle too."_

 _"There is some welding gear and chains in the barn. But most disturbing is that there is some blood on the ground and on a rope I found tied to a post. There are also bloody discarded cut zip ties."_

 _"I have not touched anything. I don't have a crime scene investigator. I rely on the RCMP for that because we usually have nothing more than bar fights or traffic tickets around here."_

 _He looked around the barn and knew he was out of his element here. He worried for the officer. What he did see did not bode well for him.]_

Ed stated "We are on the way. Please keep the area secure. We will bring CSI with us."

 _["You got it. I'll be here. I hope you can find something that helps you locate Constable Braddock" Beacon stated.]_

Greg looked at Ed and said "I'll stay here and feed you any information we get. Now that we have names we can begin to build a profile and that might help locate Sam. Go. Go find our guy."

Ed nodded and then Team One, Wordy, Team Three, Blaze's unit and two members of the CSI team all headed for SUVs. Within minutes a caravan of SRU SUVs were speeding lights flashing sirens blaring towards Edville.


	7. Tender Care of Sam's Girls & Profiling

**Tender Care of Sam's Girls & Profiling **

* * *

_**Twenty Hours Missing – General Braddock's Home – Kitchen**_

Jules was sitting at the table just poking at the lasagna. She was not very hungry but she had spent time in the kitchen with Laura when she, Scott and the four year old twins Jerrell and Anna showed up this afternoon.

Scott and the twins entertained Sadie for her for a bit. Laura had dragged her into the kitchen with the words, everyone needs to eat, why don't you teach me your recipe for lasagna that you got from Spike. Jules knew what Laura was doing. She was thankful for it. It gave her mind something to do besides worry.

They had made five pans of lasagna to feed everyone that was here. Jules seriously thought that Mason might just polish off an entire pan himself. Around her at the table now sat the General, Mark, Zach, Scott, Laura, Jerrell, Anna, Mason, Apollo, Pawn, Mike and Drake. The rest of Mike's and Mason's units were on duty on the perimeter. There was enough made so when they got breaks they could have some too.

It was mostly quiet around the table. There had been a flurry of conversation when they found out who had taken Sam. The General had put in calls to find out what happened to Yawls after he was taken away by the MPs. He was waiting for the name of the psychologist that had done the assessment on Yawls to see if he was fit to stand trial for shooting an officer.

Jules knew Team One and Three, Wordy and Blaze's unit were enroute to Edville. When she heard that name she almost snorted, of all the place names. She bet Ed was none too happy that Sam had been taken to a town that bore his name.

Waiting was so hard.

She also knew that Sam was no longer there. Tracking him would be very difficult since the subject changed vehicles. She hoped that the CSI team would be able to find something that would clue them into the type of vehicle they were looking for.

Jules also knew that now that Spike had names, he would be doing all sorts of digging. If either of them used a credit card she knew that Spike would know in very short order. With Cameo involved too, if they got a lead on a vehicle he would be able to search via the military satellites.

But waiting for word was really hard.

She pushed her lasagna around a bit more to make it appear like she was eating. She did not want to worry the men around her more than they already were. Everyone had treated her with kid gloves and made sure she and Sadie were well taken care of.

Sam's loving tender nature appeared to be a true Braddock male trait. Mason was also made in the same vein. She appreciated that he had just held her when she broke down earlier in Sam's old room. Once she had released that pent up fear and stress she was able to control her emotions better.

Sadie had calmed down being here. She basically went from Braddock male to Braddock male. She was happiest with Scott though.

It was probably because Scott looked and sounded the most like Sam. That twin thing came in handy today. Sadie had stayed awake and happy longer than normal being with Scott. And little Anna was in seventh heaven playing with Sadie. Anna thought it was like having a real live dolly to play with.

So right now, Sadie was sound asleep upstairs in Sam's old room.

Jules' claimed that room because she felt comfortable being surrounded by Sam's things. Sadie had both the yellow bunny and the blue dog tucked up close to her in the old crib that was used by all three of the General's children. It made Jules happy to know Sadie was sleeping in the crib Sam slept in.

She jumped when her phone rang. Jules pulled it out and saw it was the Boss. She answered quickly "Did you find him?"

 _[Greg heard the wanting in Jules' voice and he hated to crush that "No Jules the guys are still an hour away from Edville. I was calling to see if you wanted to discuss profiles for Tocci and Yawls. I have some background information I can share with you and we can take it from there. I'm not interrupting you with Sadie am I?"]_

Jules pushed her plate of lasagna away and stood up "No she is sleeping. Just a moment."

Then she turned to the General and asked "Is there any way we can set up a video call with SRU? I need to talk with the Boss regarding profiles on the subjects."

Mike stood and said "I can get you set up. Would the library be okay?"

Jules nodded and followed Mike to the library as she said to Greg "Mike is gonna link us up via video. I'll get right back to you."

 _[Greg smiled "Good. He can work with Jarred. Team Four just came back on shift."]_

Jules acknowledged that and then hung up and told Mike how to reach Jarred.

* * *

 _ **General Braddock's Home – Library**_

As she was waiting for the video to be connected Laura came up to Jules with her plate of lasagna and Laura said "Jules you need to eat. You are still nursing Sadie so it is important."

Laura set the plate and a large glass of iced tea on the table in the library. She stood there looking at Jules until Jules acquiesced and sat down putting a forkful of lasagna in her mouth. Laura returned with Jules' salad and a plate of garlic bread a few minutes later. Then she went to take care of putting Jerrell and Anna to bed.

The men who had been sitting at the dinner table had quickly finished their meals and made their way into the library. They would listen in. For most of them it would be a chance to watch Jules' work. Sam was always signing Jules' praises and they did not want to pass up an opportunity to watch first hand.

Jules smiled when she saw Greg. Just seeing his kind eyes had a calming effect on her. She said "Hi Boss. Good to see you. I'm glad you are helping out. Thank you."

Greg smiled at Jules. She looked tired and stressed but he saw that she was eating. That was good. The Braddock's were taking good care of Jules, the daughter of his heart. He said "Is that Spike's Ma's lasagna?"

"Yeah, it is. Laura is making me eat" Jules responded then said "So what have you found out so far."

Greg said "Let's talk Melpomene first. Melpomene Tocci, thirty three, only daughter of Hebe Tocci who was unmarried. Melpomene's father is listed as unknown on the birth certificate. Melpomene was transferred to her maternal Grandmother's care, Hestia Tocci, at thirteen when her mother abandoned her to run off with a man."

Jules said after swallowing a bite of salad "Great, we have the Greek goddess of tragedy born to the Greek goddess of nectar and ambrosia raised by the Greek goddess of hearth and home."

Greg chuckled as did the guys around Jules.

He continued "Melpomene lives in Quebec City and has been a residential caretaker for ten years. She services several residential homes and typically deals with the developmental disability wards. She however took over the care of one Abner Ian Yawls about a year ago. More on Yawls in a moment."

"The Sergeant in Quebec City executed the search warrant on Ms. Tocci's place. But he did not find any clues to where they might be going. The Sergeant is waiting for a warrant to search Yawls' home now. But they did find some things in Ms. Tocci's place that might give us a clue to what we are dealing with here."

Jules asked "Are we sure she is involved. Perhaps she was coerced into driving Yawls to Toronto."

Greg shook his head "I don't think so. Remember she was asking for you at the gun range. It might have been a coincidence with her going to Medicine Hat but I sincerely doubt that Jules."

"She has no reason that we can discern for taking a trip there. No family or friends there. And Cameo found an image of her behind you just after the security check point" Greg pointed out.

"So that is how Yawls knew what I said. She must have called him. She probably cut the cord for the tablet. But that makes no sense" Jules said. Then she suggested "What if she stole the bunny?"

"Why do you suppose she would do that Jules?" Greg queried.

Jules closed her eyes and tried to recall the plane. Had she seen Melpomene on her flight? No, no she hadn't but she was there. The flight manifest showed her name. She thought on her suggestion.

Opening her eyes Jules answered "They took Sam. They did not kill him outright. Thank God. But they took him. Why? He is still alive as far as we know."

She continued her line of thought "If they took the bunny it might be to prove to Sam that they can get to me and Sadie. Maybe they need get Sam to comply with something. Maybe they want some military secret and they are trying to blackmail him into telling them."

General Braddock stood and began to pace. Jesus Christ! He had not thought of something like that. Samuel would be in a world of emotional pain if they were threatening Jules and Sadie.

Would Samuel talk? Would he talk if it were Samuel?

Sadly the answer was no in both cases. William knew what Sam would do before he would give away a military secret. It was the same thing he would do.

William would chose to die before he would give into blackmail. That knowledge made him extremely sad because Sam would make the same choice if he had no other options.

He turned to Mike "I need you to pull all the missions that Samuel was part of and were handled through Colonel Sutton's office during Yawls time there. We need to know if there is anything of value now. Something someone would be willing to kidnap Samuel and threaten to harm his family in order to try to get him to talk."

Mike stood and Scott did too. They both understood the gravity of what the General was saying. If it was about miltary secrets the outcome could be very bad, one none of them wanted.

Scott said "I'll give him a hand."

William nodded. It was good that his nephew had level five security level given his work in Navy Intelligence.

Mike and Scott headed to the General's Office on base because that would be the best place to conduct the research.

Greg was thinking and turned to Jarred and said "It is a long shot but contact Captain Black in Medicine Hat and have him canvas post offices. Perhaps she mailed the bunny to Yawls somewhere."

He turned back to Jules and said "She might only send a picture but a tangible item would elicit a stronger emotional response from Sam."

Jules was reeling inside as she thought about the pain Sam would go through thinking that Sadie could be harmed. She worried what that would do to him. She didn't think he would ever talk. He was too honorable to give out military secrets. Too many lives depended on those remaining secret.

What she really worried about is what Sam would do instead. Would he take his own life to save his daughter and to keep secrets.

Greg saw the emotions flowing across Jules' face. For once they were completely transparent. He hurt for her.

Wishing he could hold her Greg used his calmest voice "Jules." When she didn't look at him he said again "Jules look at me."

Jules lifted her head and Greg saw the tears gathering. He said "Sam is stronger than that Jules. He is smarter too."

"I know" came out in a small voice and was unconvincing.

Greg said "Jules, Sam was on the phone with you when he was taken. He already knew the bunny was missing. He sent one to Medicine Hat. By the way Brayden is mailing that to you tomorrow. Sadie will have the replacement bunny Sam bought her soon."

"But what I'm getting at is, that Sam knows you know something happened. He knows you will be extra vigilant and quite frankly, he knows his father. Sam will know the General will circle the wagons and ensure you and Sadie are protected."

His voice was soothing as he said "So although it will hurt Sam to see that bunny, whether in picture or actual form, he will realize that Sadie and you are safe. If they are blackmailing him with that threat, it won't work. Sam will know that and do all in his power to escape."

William listened right along with Jules and everyone else in the room. What Greg just said made a whole lot of sense. Samuel was intelligent. He might react emotionally at first but he would work it out like Greg was suggesting. He breathed a sigh of relief.

He came forward and put his hand on Jules' shoulder and said "Greg is right Jules. Samuel knows my MO. He knows the first thing I would do is protect Sadie and you."

Jules took a deep cleansing breath and blew it out slowly. She glanced up at William and gave him a small smile. Yes, Sam would know that is what his dad would do because that is exactly what Sam would do too.

She turned back to Greg and asked "So what did they find at Melpomene's place? We cannot simply assume this is about military secrets. We need to know more about her and more about Yawls."

Greg nodded "What they found was a woman living beyond her means. She had a closet full of expensive clothing, receipts for day spas and expensive makeup and perfumes. They are beginning to look into her finances because those things are just not affordable on her salary."

Jules nodded "So she wants nice things. This could be about ransom if she knows Sam's mother comes from a wealthy family. But we should have gotten a ransom note by now if that were the case. And if so that would not account for taking the bunny and cutting the cord to the tablet. Those two items don't fit."

"Has anyone interviewed Joseph yet? He might be able to shed light on her" Jules asked.

Greg said "Team Three is going to head directly to Quebec City. They need to look over her place and the search warrant for Yawls' place will likely be ready by the time they arrive. They will also interview Yawls' parents."

"I spoke briefly with her work supervisor. They have been unhappy with her work lately. She has received more and more complaints from the families of the wards in her care. There is an open investigation from one family's claims that their son is not getting the things he needs."

"The records show that there are charges for him for items. But they have a paper based system, not yet computerized. So it will take a bit to dig into that and see if there is any truth to the allegations" Greg shared.

Jules arched a brow "Could be how she affords those expensive items. Maybe Jarred can get access to the credit card accounts and trace them for activity. It might throw up some red flags that might help us too."

"Good idea Jules I'll have Jarred look into that" Greg said.

Taking a sip of iced tea Jules leaned back in the chair and then asked "What do we have on Yawls so far."

Greg answered "Not much. He is the second son of Cy and Peg Yawls. He has four siblings in all; all older. He grew up in Quebec City. He was an average student with some disciplinary problems. He got into fights according to the school records but no details on what the fights were about."

"Yawls joined the Army straight out of high school. He was a clerk in the Army. Six months after boot camp he was stationed in Kandahar in Colonel Sutton's office."

"Getting authorization to view his medical records is taking a bit of time. Health privacy laws and time of day are preventing us from contacting the people necessary to get access. We only know what Winds shared with us. That Yawls had a breakdown, took a shot at Major Plouffe and was taken away by MPs. Since he is in a residential care home, he most likely did not stand trial or only served a short time in jail for his actions."

He directed his next comment to the General "Sir, when will we be able to talk to the psychologist that treated him after the breakdown?"

General Braddock stated "I'll let you know as soon as I find out. My aide is trying to track him down."

Jules turned to the General "Is there any history between Sam and Yawls that you are aware of?"

William shook his head "No but if there is, Mike and Scott might be able to discern that looking through the mission records."

Jules looked back at Greg "Not much for us to go on. We have no idea who is leading who. Is it Melpomene pulling the strings or Yawls?"

Rubbing his hands over his face Greg took a deep breath. "Good question. Jules get some rest now. I'll contact you when we have anything else."

"Call me after Ed checks in from Edville" Jules instructed.

"Okay Jules. You give Sadie an extra hug for me" Greg said and then cut the video feed.

Jules stared at the black screen for a bit as all she learned, which was not much, started to roll around in her head. Why would a residential caretaker with a penchant for fine things and a boyfriend who was a cop get involved with an ex-soldier who had mental issues? And why would they target Sam?

She knew she was missing some elements. Like why would Yawls shoot Plouffe? Yes Plouffe was a sick man. What he did to Sam and the General was demented. Could he have harmed Yawls in some way?

A light came on in Jules' head and she turned to William "Sir. Merrill said that Plouffe blackmailed him when he found out he was an assassin for hire. Do you think that Plouffe could have been blackmailing Yawls for something?"

William sat down and said "That could be possible. Maybe that is in the confidential psychologist's notes. I do not recall anything like that. If that were the case Plouffe would have been investigated back then. It might have saved Samuel much pain if that were the case. I know this is horrible of me to say, but a part of me wishes that Yawls' aim was better that day."

"Plouffe would have been dead and Matt might still be alive" he sighed.

Mark looked at William and said "So it is true, Plouffe arranged Matt's death."

William realized his mistake and looked at everyone in the room. He said "All I'm saying is that the sequence of events in Samuel's career in JTF2 might have been different if Plouffe was killed by Yawls. Plouffe would not have been in command of that mission and Samuel might not have gotten the all clear to fire."

Everyone nodded. They knew that was as far as William would go in confirming that Plouffe arranged Matt's death. At this point it was moot anyways. Sam would always carry the knowledge it was a bullet fired by him that killed his friend. Regardless of whether Plouffe had arranged it, that would make it no less painful for Sam.

William stood and said "Jules can I get you anything else to eat?"

Jules looked at the General and said "No thank you. I should take these into the kitchen and get busy on the dishes."

Zach popped up out of the chair and took her dishes "No way. I got it covered. You made dinner the guys and I will clean up." Then he turned to Apollo, Pawn and Drake and said "KP duty guys."

The guys headed out and Jules went to the couch to sit near Mason to wait for Greg's call. She was worried that they would not find a clue in Edville.

Mason wrapped an arm around Jules' shoulder and pulled her close. He said quietly "Blondie is strong. He will get through this. Blaze and Winds and the other guys will not rest until they find him."

Jules nodded and just leaned into Mason.

Mark looked at Jules and his heart broke for her. Her quiet stoicism reminded him of Yvonne. Of all the times Yvonne would quietly wait for word on William or Sam. There was a quiet beauty and strength in Jules that was abundantly clear.

He also knew there was a fire inside her too. Mark would not want to be Yawls or Melpomene if they were anywhere near Jules at the moment. Jules would light them up for sure if they were here. Jules was very protective of Sam and Sadie. Just as protective as Sam was of his girls.

William's phone rang and he answered it. He spoke briefly and then hung up. He looked at Jules and said "My aide located the psychologist. He will be at SRU HQ at six am tomorrow. We can let Greg know when he calls."

Jules nodded "That's good."

William noted that Jules was somewhat calm and relaxed next to Mason and he did not want to disturb her night's sleep. He withheld the name of the psychologist because he knew it would cause her unneeded stress tonight.

.

* * *

 _ **AN:** Next chapter is almost done and will be posted soon too._


	8. Lance's Life, Plan B & That's Gonna Hurt

**Lance's Life, Plan B & That's Gonna Hurt!**

* * *

 _ **Twenty Hours Missing – SRU SUV Enroute to Edville**_

Lance was driving the second SRU SUV in the line of SUVs. Ed was setting a grueling pace and he had to keep good watch on the roadway. In the SUV with him were Spike in the front passenger seat and in the back were Cameo and Tyler. He was driving all the techies it seemed.

They had their laptops open and had connected with the military satellite so they could continue to work on leads.

Spike had not been involved in the selection trials for Team Three and he really knew nothing about Lance. But it bothered him that Lance's friend was the boyfriend of the woman that followed Jules to the Hat.

After pondering that for most of the ride Spike finally asked "Lance why did you and Joseph, that was his name, try out for Toronto SRU? That is a quite a distance to move from Quebec City."

Lance held the sigh in. He knew this would be coming at some point. How could it not? He was the new guy and his friend had called in and said the car used to kidnap a fellow officer belonged to his girlfriend. If it was him, Lance would not have waited so long to begin grilling him if it was the other way around.

He answered "Yes his name is Joseph Bissonnette. We have been friends since we met at the police academy ten years ago. He is a good guy with bad luck in women. Hell we both are."

Lance glanced at Spike and said "I don't talk about it much but there is a reason I wanted to move to Toronto. It's not too pleasant and it's personal."

Spike said "I don't mean to pry. But Sam is like a brother to me. I have to explore every avenue. And the fact that your friend is dating the person that stalked Jules, who is like a sister to me, has me worried just what might be going on here. Maybe your friend is involved and you don't know it. Hell maybe you are involved."

Tyler spoke up for his teammate "Hey Spike that is uncalled for."

Rollie came over the headset "Spike, go with caution. Lance passed all the background checks and he is one of us now."

Spike blew out a breath "Sorry Lance. I just …"

Lance cut him off "No I get it. If I were in your shoes and let's say Sam called you and said what Joseph did, then I would want answers too. So let me just share some things to put your mind at ease. Okay?"

Spike nodded "Only if you want too. No pressure. Everyone has a right to their private life."

Lance nodded and said "Mike, remember when you welcomed Sam to the Daddy club?"

From two SUVs back, Mike answered "Yeah when Sam was speaking baby gibberish to Sadie. Why?"

Lance shared "I'm a member of that club too. My son Milo just turned two. He can make me blabber like Sam did. My ex-wife got full custody of Milo. It was a messy divorce because she was sleeping with the Judge that decided our case. I could never prove it so I could not seek a change of Judge."

"After she won custody I was given visitation rights every other Saturday for six hours. Then about five months ago she up and moved to Toronto. I had no legal custody so I could not stop her. Six hours every other week was not enough but it is more than I have now."

"For months I managed to make the sixteen hour round trip drive to Toronto every weekend that was mine so I could spend six hours with Milo. But my ex is often not there when I showed up. I was missing out on Milo growing up and I was afraid he was going to forget me."

"So when I saw the opening for SRU in Toronto I decided to try out. I always had a desire to go for a SRU team, but Quebec City does not have one. If I got the spot on the Toronto team then it would solve one of my problems. I would be closer to Milo and it would be easier to enforce my visitation rights. It had the added advantage that I would also get to move in the direction career wise that I wanted to go."

"Joseph is a good friend and when I said I was going to try out he said he would try out also. At the time we thought there were two open spots on Team Three. He thought it would be cool if we both got it. That way we could help each other as we settled in a new city."

"Joseph suggested to me that once I was settled with SRU I should try to get a new hearing on custody. That my ex would not be sleeping with the Judge here so I would get a fair hearing and possibly the 50/50 custody I want."

Lance sighed "We were gonna share expenses here so I could save up for a good lawyer. My ex got everything I had in the divorce. I mean absolutely everything. I was stuck with her lawyer's bill. All the money in the bank account went to her. She even got my car, even though she had one of her own. She sold my car to the Judge for half of what it is worth. Go figure."

"As far as Joseph, well he is really a good guy. He took me in after my divorce when I was destitute and had no place to live or means with which to get a place to stay. He let me stay free of charge at his apartment. When we worked different shifts he let me use his car to get to work. We carpooled when we worked the same shift."

He glanced at Spike again "So there you have it, my unpleasant life's story. It is one reason I know that Joseph cannot be involved. I only met Melpomene briefly twice about six months ago, She had red hair then. She is a piece of work and she definitely did not like me."

"They always hung out at her place because she told Joseph she didn't want to be around his loser friend. That would be me she was referring too. I tried to tell Joseph he could do better than her when he told about me some of the shit she pulled. Like calling his mother a bitch to her face. Joseph's mother is the sweetest woman on this earth, she didn't like Melpomene either."

"We were starting to make head way with him. Joseph was starting to see what a controlling bitch she really was. Much like my ex. I guess I will get my wish for him now. There is no way he will stick with her after something like this."

Spike stared at Lance "I'm sorry buddy. That has got to …"

Lance said "Suck big time. Yeah it does. But I'll work it out."

Tyler said "Lance when we get Sam back let's talk. I know a good lawyer. I'm sure Dale Gibbson would be willing to help."

Spike nodded "Yeah Dale's the best. If you ever have to do an SIU interview I know Sam will be calling Dale for you. Dale will be there before you arrive. You are SRU now. We look after our own. Expect us to help you when this is all resolved buddy."

Lance smiled and said "Thanks that means a lot. But first we have to focus on finding Sam."

Ed said "Five miles out, time to see if we can find some clues to find our guy. Rollie we'll switch up vehicles once we get there so your team can continue to Quebec City."

Rollie stated "Copy that."

* * *

 _ **Twenty-Two Hours Missing – Regina International Airport**_

Melpomene waited to board the plane. She knew that finding Jules was not going to happen once that little girl hopped off that stool. She could kick herself for under estimating a little girl. She had asked a stupid question and Melpomene could see that the little girl knew she was fishing for information.

So she decided to cut her losses in Medicine Hat and come up with a Plan B.

SRU were not stupid either. Since they were alerted to Sam being taken she knew they would put their full resources on finding him.

Too bad, she was smarter than them and they would never find Sam. Not where Yawls was taking him.

She knew it would be too risky to fly out of Medicine Hat in case they actually discovered she was involved. That was highly doubtful, since she covered her tracks well. Nothing could be traced to her.

In Toronto, she and Yawls had taken a bus to the airport. Then she had rented a car for Yawls using the name and credit card of one of her other wards.

The only good thing about being a residential daycare attendant was that it was easy to charge things to their Provence issued cards. Just a little creative bookwork covered up those things.

But to be on the safe side she had driven to Regina in Saskatchewan. She parked the rental car in the long term parking lot and then booked a flight to Saguenay, Quebec. Once she got there it would be a short two hour drive to La Dore, Quebec.

She had visited La Dore during the summers as child with her maternal grandmother. After her mother ran off with a man and decided that a kid was too much trouble, she lived in Quebec City with her grandmother. Her mother preferred her men to her own daughter.

Her grandmother owned a vacation home in La Dore and it was still around even though it was rather run down since she had died five years ago. The place was still locked up in a battle between her mother and her uncle. Her grandmother died without a will and both laid claim to the vacation home. Until it was settled in court, the place remained empty.

It was the perfect place for Yawls to take Sam.

She heard the boarding call for her flight and headed to the gate. She knew she would throw off the SRU by flying out of Regina and into Saguenay.

Melpomene would rent a car in Saguenay using one of her other ward's name and credit card. So even if they tracked her to Saguenay, there would be nothing else to track her with.

In about ten hours, she would join Yawls in La Dore and she would make sure that Yawls killed Sam.

As she went to hand her boarding pass to the gate agent she hit her nail on the little podium. One of her nails popped off.

"Dammit" Melpomene cried.

The agent looked at the woman and said "I hate when that happens."

Melpomene nodded and simply continued to board the plane.

She mentally readjusted her schedule. The plane would arrive at Saguenay about six am. She would need to find a nail shop to get her nail fixed before she headed to La Dore. Most nail places didn't open until eight am. She would get a nice breakfast as she waited for a shop to open.

Melpomene calculated she would be delayed by a few hours, four at tops if she decided to get a facial too. That should give Yawls enough time to torture Sam. Yawls should be ready to kill him by the time she got to La Dore.

Yes this would work out just fine now she thought.

When Sam was dead then Joseph would get his SRU spot. Then she could live the life of an idle wife.

She could sit by the pool, get her nails done and shop. Maybe she would get breast implants too. Melpomene was sure Joseph would pay for those.

Joseph was sure to get a huge pay raise when he joined SRU. The cream of the police force would surely get paid more than just a beat cop. Yes, her life of ease would start once Sam was dead.

Melpomene would make sure Yawls followed through.

* * *

 _ **Twenty-Four Hours Missing – Basement of a Home – La Dore**_

Every last inch of him hurt. Being a human punching bag was not fun. Sam hung his head down and spat out coppery tasting spit.

Well it wasn't so much spit as just blood. He was so thirsty and dry that making spit would be next to impossible.

The last hour had been very painful. He had been dragged out of the van and down the flight of stairs feet first to a cold basement. That hurt like hell as his body impacted with each step.

Once in the basement the man had thrown the chain that was looped through his arms over an exposed beam in the low basement ceiling. Then the man had pulled him to a standing position as he pulled the chain then secured the chain with a padlock. His arms were above his head and he felt them going numb.

Being chained like this would keep him in a standing position. The only lucky part was that the ceiling was so low that his feet were still on the ground even though they were still bound with the zip ties. Otherwise, he would have been hanging by his wrists and that would have been hell on his shoulders.

Then the man proceeded to vent his fury on him.

It started with punches to his stomach; all his soft parts. Punching there did little damage to the man's hands but it hurt Sam a lot. He had clenched his jaw so he would not scream out as the punches landed one after another. The man was strong and he held nothing back as he went to town on him.

The man had taken a small break at some point then came back at him with a vengeance.

When the punches began landing on his chest and back a small gasp or hiss escaped his mouth each time the man hit the rib that Sam was certain was cracked.

Sam was glad he was not hitting him with a bat or a pipe. He saw both of those items in the corner of the basement. If the bastard did use either of those items, he would surely break his ribs.

That could be bad, because a broken rib could easily puncture a lung and then Sam knew he would be in deep shit.

The last five punches were directed at his face; one to his eye and four to his jaw. By that time the man had nearly spent his energy, so they were not quite as hard. But they still hurt like hell.

Sam felt his right eye starting to swell a bit. He hoped it didn't swell closed. The inside of his mouth was cut and bleeding from the punches to his jaw. Sam knew his entire body under his clothing would be mottled in bright colorful bruising by now.

He hurt but he was not in too bad of shape. It could be a whole lot worse Sam thought as he eyed the bat and pipe. If he could just get free from these chains he would still be mobile enough to escape.

But he could tell he was on the verge of dehydration. He needed water. Sam knew he could go without food for a long time. But he needed water.

So Sam spit out blood again to clear his mouth then ventured in a dry cracked voice "Can I have some water?"

Yawls looked at Sam with wild eyes and laughed "No."

Then he went to a table and grabbed the coffee pot he had set to brew between rounds of punching his enemy. It had felt so good. He kept seeing Plouffe's face as he punched Sam though. That's why he finally went after his face. He saw Plouffe's face.

He poured one hot cup of coffee and one iced cup of coffee and then headed back to Sam. He smiled "No water but you can have coffee."

Yawls then threw the hot coffee at Sam's chest.

Sam bucked and swayed as the hot coffee burned his chest again. He clamped his jaw tightly to stop from screaming out.

Walking up close Yawls said "Oh I see you still don't like it hot. Maybe the iced coffee is more to your liking."

He yanked Sam's head back and poured the entire cup of iced coffee directly in his face.

Sam's first reaction was to try and yank his face out of the stream of liquid. The man had too tight a hold and he could not do it.

His reactionary emotional response took him back to the terrorist camp where he was tortured for three months. Sam began to spiral out of control emotionally as thoughts of being _there_ attacked his mind.

But then Sam's brain kicked in and he yelled "Not there. Not there. I'm NOT there."

Yawls stopped. That was an odd thing for Sam to say. He asked "Where? Where are you?"

Sam was breathing heavily as he tried to banish thoughts of _there_. He answered "Not there. Here wherever here is. But here is not _there_."

Yawls had discovered that pain shone in the eyes of Sam even if he did not yell. So he walked over and poured another cup of iced coffee. He could see wherever there was it was very painful. That was good Yawls thought. He could cause Sam pain with a simple cup of coffee in the face. How ironic.

He came back and yanked Sam's head back again and said "I think you should go there again." Yawls poured the coffee in his face again.

Sam sputtered and gasped as he tried to get some liquid like he had when he was waterboarded. He had his mind in the here and now again. It was hard to get liquid to swallow without it going into his lungs too.

It was something Sam needed to risk because he needed something to drink.

He knew he needed to prevent dehydration and this was one way he could get some liquid. It was not pleasant by any means and Sam would have to work real hard to keep his mind in the here and now and not end up back _there_. But he needed liquid if he was going to escape.

Sam got some to drink in that deluge. He then yelled in what he hoped was a convincing panicked voice "Not there. Not there."

He hoped it would make the man repeat pouring another cup in his face. Sam was rewarded with that when the man returned with another cup and laughed as he poured it in his face again.

Sam managed to get his breathing in line this time and was able to get more liquid into him. So he yelled "God please not there. Not there" when the third cup was empty.

After ten minutes, four cups of iced coffee and six cups of plain water poured in his face, the man finally tired of the game. Sam had slaked his thirst somewhat. It was not anything close to what he needed but it was better than nothing. He chose to hang limply looking completely defeated.

Sam was playing a new game.

During the drive to wherever he was now his mind had set upon several realities. First and foremost he remembered that he had been calling Jules when he was taken. Jules would have been alerted to danger. She would have taken steps to protect Sadie and herself.

Secondly, the video of Sadie on the plane was taken before the call.

Jules would have alerted SRU and his father. Knowing his dad, the General would have swooped in and collected Sadie and Jules and sent a JTF2 unit to protect them. Sam knew his dad would do that because that is exactly what Sam would have done at the first sign of trouble.

It comforted Sam greatly to realize that his girls were safe regardless of what this man might say. Now, Sam just had to figure a way out. It was still in his best interest to appear cowed and more injured than he was.

Sam knew he should have yelled and screamed and carried on when he was getting punched. But a small bit of pride got in the way of that. He had screamed and cried so much when Qasim and his band of bastards had tortured him, that Sam refused to do that now. He could handle punches.

Now if this bastard, he could now think of him as a bastard, because negotiation was no longer needed. If this bastard started in with needles, screaming might be a factor. But until then, Sam refused to scream in pain.

Escape was paramount now.

Sam's mind considered that a moment. Then he rethought his earlier thought about negotiation not being needed. Maybe he could talk his way out of this. It was worth a shot because at the moment getting out of these chains and bindings just wasn't happening.

If he could make a connection, pfft, not likely, but if he could? Then maybe he could get out of this sooner.

So Sam carefully lifted his head and asked in a dejected voice "Who are you, where am I and why did you take me?"

Yawls paced back and forth muttering "Enemy of my enemy is my enemy."

When the man did not respond Sam said "You got that wrong. It is enemy of my enemy is my friend. You said Plouffe was your enemy and he hurt you. He hurt me too."

Yawls stopped pacing "I know he hurt you. He hated you. You were his enemy."

Shaking his head slowly Sam said sadly "No he didn't hate me. I was not his enemy. I was nothing to him. I was just a tool he used to hurt my father. I was innocent. He used and hurt me to get back at my father for imagined insults."

Sam noted the look in the man's eyes when Sam had said he was an innocent. It was different. Could that be how to connect with him?

Thinking that might be the ticket, Sam said it again "I was an innocent. I was a pawn in his painful game. I was a soldier following orders of my superiors. Plouffe didn't care one whit about me. I was only a means to an end for him. An innocent like you."

Yawls' eyes became lucid for a moment. He stared at Sam.

Sam thought, good I made a connection.

His thoughts were dashed when the man's eyes turned manic and he growled as he pick up the pipe.

Sam thought, oh shit, that's gonna hurt!

Yawls moved the pipe from hand to hand as he paced back and forth in front of Sam.

He stopped in front of Sam and swung the pipe back as he yelled "INNOCENT! YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT IT IS TO BE INNOCENT. YOU HAD IT EASY. YOU WERE THE GENERAL'S SON. YOU GOT TO SLEEP UNTIL 0900 WHILE I HAD TO BE UP AT 0600 HOURS FOR THE BRIEFING. YOU GOT TO GO PLAY WITH THAT LONG LEGGED BLONDE WHILE I WAS GETTING COFFEE."

Yawls swung the pipe and connected with Sam's chest.

Sam screamed as white hot pain lanced through his body.

He heard and felt his rib break.

Sam was gasping for breath as he hung limply from the beam.

His head lolled down as the waves of pain continued to course through his chest.

Yep that hurt. It hurt like hell.

Sam heard the pipe as it clanked to the ground and the sounds of the man storming up the stairs of the basement.

When his breathing was less labored and the pain ebbed slightly Sam thought, I truly suck at negotiation.

Then Sam whispered in a pain laced voice "Jules help me."


	9. Changes & Jules' and Sam's Connection

**Changes & Jules' and Sam's Connection**

* * *

 _ **Twenty-Four Hours Missing – SRU SUVs Enroute to Montreal**_

Ed was behind the wheel again as Team One, Wordy and the JTF2 guys were now enroute to Montreal. His mind was working through everything they saw in that barn. The CSI team had stayed there to finish processing it.

The blood on the rope and zip ties luckily was minor. That meant to Ed that Sam had not been shot or stabbed. Those things had lurked in the back of his mind. Part of him had worried that when they got to the barn they would locate Sam dead somewhere on that farm.

Thankfully after an exhaustive search of the barn, the house and the surrounding fields they did not find any bodies. What they had found indicated that Yawls had changed his appearance. Jude and Sean had found the clothing that Yawls was wearing in the videos in one of the bedrooms of the house. They found scissors and a battery operated pair of clippers along with long strands of hair and beard whiskers.

Everyone had been disheartened when that was found. They had thought that now not only did they not know what type of vehicle was being used now they did not have a current image of the subject. And worse was that no one knew which direction to take from Edville.

Team Three had left for Quebec City shortly after the search of the barn. Ed could see that Team Three was reeling. They only had one day with Sam as TL but everyone except Lance had known Sam for years. Sam had worked with many of them closely during the past year as SRU pulled together.

All SRU team members worked hard and covered additional shifts in the past year. But no one had worked harder than Sam. That is why Holleran insisted on letting Sam choose which team he wanted to be TL of. Sam had earned that right.

Rollie had privately told Ed that he was damned glad when Sam chose Team Three and semi-gloated that he had finally succeeded in stealing him. Ed had laughed as they recalled the day Sam did his requals after he had been abducted and beat to hell by the dirty cops. Rollie had stated 'I'm gonna steal him from you one day Ed. I got an open spot on my team just made for him'. Ed had replied 'Not happening. Not now, not ever. Sam belongs with Team One we have his back'.

Ed sighed, yeah it had happened. But it was what Sam and Jules had decided. Sam wanted Jules to stay with Team One.

When those two got married the team knew Team One would be changed. But the day of their wedding changed Team One in ways none of them could have imagined. So many changes.

He thought back to his words to Rollie that long ago day. Even though Sam was not on Team One anymore, Team One still had Sam's back and he still belonged. They would do everything in their power to find him and bring him home. He knew that Rollie's team would do everything in their power too.

Spike had come through for them all. One of his programs he had set up to scan had pinged as the team and unit milled around the barn trying to decide if they should follow Team Three to Quebec City when no leads were to be found in Edville.

His program got a hit for Yawls' credit card in Montreal. He had used it to buy gas.

Cameo and Spike worked quickly and located the gas station it was used at. The gas station had an outdated security system. But Spike got creative and had the owner video call with him and that's how they watched the security video.

Spike identified the vehicle they were after. It was a light blue panel van with no windows. The license plate was obscured again.

But Cameo was able to tap into the military satellites. He was able to track the van as it went through Montreal and got onto Autoroute 40 N. They had lost the van shortly outside the city when it was outside the range of the satellite.

So they were headed to Montreal. Spike continued to run his program hoping to get another ping of the credit card to help them determine where they were heading after they got to Montreal. It could be to Quebec City or any number of other locations.

Ed yawned and stretched his arms a bit then refocused on the road. Montreal was still three hours away. It was eleven pm now and they had been at this for twenty four hours with only short breaks. But none of them were willing to stop. Sam's life hung in the balance.

Blaze saw Ed yawn and he asked "Want me to drive a bit?"

"I'm good for now. You haven't slept any. Why don't you try to get some rest" Ed said quietly so as to not wake Wordy and Winds in the back.

The team was sleeping in rotation so that they could keep going. Blaze had suggested that and Ed agreed it would be a good idea.

Blaze said "I'll sleep when I'm dead."

Ed chuckled "That's such a soldier thing to say."

Shrugging Blaze responded "Yeah, well I'll have a lot of time to sleep soon."

"Why?" Ed asked.

Blaze shifted in his seat and glanced back at Winds. He grinned sadly. "Well with my promotion to Major I'll be taking on more desk work."

"My unit was enroute from Kandahar to Ottawa when we were diverted to Toronto to help find Blondie. We were scheduled for down rotation which is good because Lizzy is nearly due to pop. Little Nathan is almost here."

Ed smiled "That's number two for you. Already named him."

Blaze chuckled "In my mind it is number five but that is beside the point. But yeah, couldn't think of a better name. Winds and me have been together so long I cannot remember a time without him as my second in command. So naming the little one after him is fitting."

"Anyways, with my promotion I'll be handing over the unit to Winds. The unit will have some down time and then will get two new recruits to train before they head back. It will be odd not to go with Winds. But I cannot think of anyone else better to hand off my unit too. Winds should have had his own unit years and years ago."

"In fact, when Yankee was killed he was offered a unit. Winds turned it down to stay with me. Mason ended up taking command of that new unit. It was hard to see him go but it was the right thing for Mason. Change is always difficult."

"The hardest change for me was when we lost Matt and Blondie so quickly. God I wish I had handled that better" Blaze said and sighed.

He turned to Ed and said seriously "Thank you for taking such good care of Blondie when he landed at SRU. I consider him my first son. I'm so glad that he found a place where he could heal and find the beauty of life Matt always talked about. If anyone deserves it, Blondie does."

Ed glanced at Blaze and said "We didn't do so hot at first. We almost lost him too."

"Water under the bridge Ed. Water under the bridge. I know how Blondie regards you. He learned a lot from you. You helped shape him and he will be a damned good TL because of you" Blaze stated.

Ed liked the way Blaze was speaking. It was if he knew they would find Sam and everything would be okay. He appreciated the positive attitude.

He responded "Sam learned from you too. Positive attitude might be one of those things."

Blaze chuckled "Nah, I learned that from him. No matter the shit that he went through Blondie kept coming back and he would have a smile on his face in short order. Damn that kid is stubborn. It's a good thing. It helped him out so many times and kept him alive when anyone else would have died."

Ed arched a brow "I know what you mean. Some of the stunts he's pulled and still lived boggle my mind."

Reaching out to pat Ed's shoulder Blaze asked semi-seriously "Did you ever accept that Blondie has a different set of risk calculations?"

Ed laughed "No. I'm stubborn too. Some day Sam is gonna gonna see things my way and he is gonna take fewer unacceptable risks."

Wordy and Winds burst out laughing in the backseat. They had been listening all along. It was difficult to sleep with Sam missing.

Winds said "Good luck with that. I think hell will freeze over before that happens."

Wordy looked at Winds and said "Didn't hell freeze over once before?"

Blaze turned and looked at Wordy. He blew out a breath "Yeah I guess it did."

Blondie had reactivated to save Ben. He had done something none of them ever thought he would do. It took an extreme situation to get him to do that but he did. Maybe with little Sadie in the picture Blondie might be inclined to lean more towards Ed's definition of risk.

Ed's mind was thinking along the same lines as Blaze and he said in a positive and cocky manner "So given the right set of circumstances Sam will begin to see it my way."

The guys chuckled and then Wordy said "So Winds you are taking over the unit?"

Winds nodded "Yeah things are changing for all of us. Blondie moved to Team Three and Blaze is moving to a desk. You know, I think hell did freeze over cause I didn't think either of those would ever happen."

The four of them talked for an hour about all the changes in all their lives and then Blaze, Winds and Wordy actually nodded off to sleep. Ed decided he would drive to Montreal and then as then grab a nap. Hopefully they would get another clue soon as to where Yawls was taking Sam.

* * *

 _ **Twenty-Seven Hours Missing – General Braddock's Home – Sam's Old Room**_

 _Jules and Sam were standing on a log bridge and kissing passionately. The kissing turned into teasing words as they tussled with each other and both ended up on their butts laughing in the stream below._

 _But then a dark shadow passed over them and Sam was dragged away from her. Sam was on his back and he was being drug by his feet. As he was dragged Sam yelled at her to run and get to safety and to protect Sadie._

 _Jules screamed and ran as she tried to catch Sam. But the faster she ran the further away Sam was dragged. When he was completely out of her sight she stood in the forest surrounded by trees turning and turning trying to find him. Sam was nowhere to be found._

 _Then she saw Sadie up in a tree. Jules climbed the tree and pulled Sadie into her arms. It felt safe in the tree. There was a cool breeze and Sadie babbled happily._

 _But then it changed._

 _She was no longer in the forest, in a tree with Sadie in her arms._

 _Jules was now in a dark, cold room._

 _She could hear chains clanking and gasps of gurgling breaths._

 _Jules turned and turned in circles and then she saw him._

 _Sam was hanging in chains._

 _She reached for Sam just as he screamed in intense pain._

Jules bolted upright in bed and clutched her side as pain rippled through. Her breathing was rapid and shallow. She wiped the sweat from her forehead.

As she got enough breath in to softly breathe out "Sam."

Jules sat back on the headboard of the bed as her heart rate began to slow. She had a nightmare. It felt so real. So real.

The pain in her side slowly ebbed away but she did not move her hand.

Tears fell silently from her eyes. Their connection was so strong sometimes. She knew what she saw was real. Sam was chained up some place cold and dark and he had been hurt so badly he screamed in pain.

Jules whispered "Hold on my love. Help is coming."

She glanced at the clock and saw it was two am. Sadie would be waking soon to be feed. Jules stood and walked to the crib and gazed down at Sadie. She was awake but quiet.

Sadie had the bunny gripped tightly in her tiny hands. Looking at her mommy Sadie babbled for the first time "da da da da dada dada da dada."

Jules' heart broke hearing the new sound. Sam should have been here to hear that.

Then she picked up Sadie and held her close to her heart as she whispered "Dada. That's right Sadie. Think about dada. We need to send him positive thoughts. Daddy needs our help. That is how we can help him right now."

Sadie smiled and continued to try out her new sound "dada da da da dada da da dada."

Jules took Sadie to bed with her and laid down. Soon Sadie was nuzzling and ready to nurse.

As Jules nursed Sadie she whispered to the night "Sam our daughter said Dada tonight. You need to hear that, so hang on. Hold on my love. Help is coming."

* * *

 _ **Twenty-Seven Hours Missing – Basement of a Home – La Dore**_

Yawls trudged down the stairs to the basement. He was not able to sleep. The words Sam said haunted his dreams. I was an innocent. I was a pawn in his painful game. Plouffe didn't care one whit about me. An innocent like you. They would not let him sleep.

He clutched the package that Melpomene had sent and he retrieved from the post office in Montreal. Yawls had to silence those words so he could sleep. This should do it. He needed to make Sam feel pain like he felt. Sam was his enemy.

Killing the enemy of his enemy would make him a strong man again. But torturing him and making him feel pain would too.

Sam hung from the chains. He had just woken from a light doze at the sound of the door opening to the basement.

His arms had long since gone completely numb. Sam flexed his fingers to keep circulation going. It was painful and he felt the pins and needles sensation running down his arm. The pain in his chest was ever present as he breathed. His rib was broken but it had not punctured his lung.

Sam made sure to take deep breaths every so often even though it sent searing pain though him. It was important to do that. If he had gotten any water in his lungs with his method to get something to drink he needed to keep his lungs moving to ward off pneumonia.

He had no concept of time or how long he had been hanging here. His body craved to lie down. But there was no way he could do that chained as he was. It was a good thing he could sleep standing up. He hadn't done that in a long time. But it was a skill once learned was known forever.

Sam heard the man stop in front of him and he debated whether he should open his eyes.

His debate was moot when the man punched him in the side. Unprepared for the assault Sam screamed as intense pain rippled through his chest. His eyes clenched shut for a moment but then opened and glared at the man. He was a sadistic bastard Sam decided.

Yawls smiled "Oh I see you couldn't sleep either."

Sarcastically Sam responded "Actually I was sleeping like a baby. What the hell do you want with me you sadistic bastard?"

"Sadistic bastard. Has a nice ring to it. Much better than yellow-bellied yokel. You know that is what Plouffe called me? Well I like sadistic bastard better. Time to make the coffee" Yawls said.

Then he walked over to the coffee maker, set the package down and set about brewing a pot.

Sam wondered about the man. He was so fixated on coffee. He racked his brain. Who the hell was this man and what the hell did Plouffe do to him? And why was he bent on hurting him?"

While the coffee was brewing Yawls walked back over to Sam and said "You will do everything I tell you to do. You will say Yes Sir, thank you Sir and again Sir or you will feel more pain."

Sam only stared. Like hell he was saying that.

Yawls unlocked the padlock holding the chain around the beam. He let go of the chain.

Sam's arms came down. He tried to remain standing but his legs gave out. The only reason he had still been standing was because of the chains. Sam tried to reduce the jarring to his chest as he fell to his knees. He hissed as his broken rib jarred with the impact of his knees and the floor.

He sucked in several deep breaths to control the pain. Sam lifted his head and glared at the man. He would have stood if he could but his feet were zip tied together and he could not get up at the moment bound as he was. Secretly Sam just wanted to curl up but he forced his body to remain rigid and at least upright on his knees.

Yawls grinned at the pain he saw cross Sam's face. He said "On your hands and knees like a dog."

Sam refused to move and remained silent.

Yawls shouted "I said on your hands and knees and you better say yes Sir."

Sam received a punch to the face. He managed to remain kneeling and glared at the man.

Turning Yawls strode a few feet to where he had dropped the pipe and picked it up. He held it in one hand as he tapped it in the palm of his other hand "Do what you were told or I hit you with the pipe again."

Weighing his options Sam knew he better comply. Getting hit with the pipe again could do more damage and would impede escape. Sam bent down and placed his hands in front of him on the floor. Once in position he said "Yes sir."

Yawls chortled loudly. Oh this is what he needed. His enemy was under his complete control. The coffee pot gurgled and Yawls turned to see it was done.

He wandered back, set the pipe on the bench and poured one hot and one iced coffee then headed back to Sam.

"Coffee time" Yawls said as he poured the hot coffee on Sam's back.

Sam moved to get away from the burning liquid and rolled to his side gasping as he hit the ground. "What the hell is it with you and the fucking hot coffee?" Sam yelled.

Yawls' voice got sing-songish as he said "I thought you lived off of coffee. The Colonel certainly did; coffee in the morning, coffee in the afternoon and coffee at night. All he ever thought I was good for was getting coffee."

His voice turned hard and calculating "I'll show him. I'm good at planning missions. I planned this mission. Every last detail. Times, places, actions."

Yawls smiled as he poured the iced coffee into Sam's face from his standing position.

Sam sputtered as the coffee splashed in his face. He turned away because he could. When Yawls was done Sam said angrily "Just who the fuck are you?"

Yawls turned to walk back to the little bench where the coffee pot was. He had set the package down. Yawls picked it up and ripped it open. He strode back to Sam.

Sam watched warily from his position on the ground. He really should be controlling his emotions better. But right now he was beyond pissed off.

Stopping in front of Sam, Yawls said "I'm the man you are going to obey. If you don't I'm going to call my associate and she is going to kill your little Sadie."

Sam wanted to yell that was not going to happen. But he held his tongue. Actually he had to bite his tongue to keep from telling the SOB that he had no chance in hell of getting that close to his daughter. That his father would blow him away before he could touch a hair on her sweet head.

But he did glare. His eyes were hard and cold as ice.

Yawls grinned. "You saw the video. But I need you to know we can get closer." He pulled the yellow bunny out of the package.

Shaking his head Yawls said "It was so easy. Like taking candy from a baby. Oh wait, like taking a bunny from a baby. My associate was so close she could have stabbed your sweet Sadie. Instead she stabbed the bunny."

Yawls pulled out some of the stuffing from the gaping hole in the bunny and let it drop in front of Sam's face.

Sam paled as he saw the stuffing on the floor. They had gotten close enough to get the bunny. They were close to Sadie.

His eyes shifted back to the man. The man had the wild look in his eyes again. Sam prepared to be hurt again and to swallow his screams.

But to his amazement the man reached down and grabbed the chains around his hands. The man wrapped it around a post several times and then padlocked it so that Sam had little chain length to move.

Sam's eyes reverted back to the stuffing. They had gotten close enough that they could have harmed Sadie. Sam's heart lurched.

Yawls yawned feeling very sleepy now. He looked down at Sam and then kicked him once for good measure. Yawl's smiled as he was rewarded with a choked off cry of pain.

He thought that after a good night's sleep he would continue to cause his enemy pain. Yawls tossed the yellow bunny on the ground and stalked out of the basement muttering "Enemy of my enemy is my enemy."

When the door closed Sam opened his eyes. Waves of pain rolled though Sam and he reverted to sniper breathing to regain some control. As he breathed, hearing Ed's voice in his head counting out the breaths for him, his eyes landed on the yellow bunny.

Sam reached out. The bunny was too far from his hands. It hurt like a son of bitch but Sam moved his body and used his bound legs to kick at the bunny. After fifteen minutes he was sweating profusely from the effort and the pain it caused. But Sam had moved the bunny closer.

He laid back down and reached out his hands. His fingertips barely touched the bunny. Sam strained further and finally got purchase on the bunny.

Sam drew his bound hands to his chest with the bunny tightly inside.

"Jules keep Sadie safe" Sam whispered into the cold dark basement.

He held the yellow bunny close to his heart and let his mind fill with images of Sadie smiling and babbling.

Sam smiled and whispered to the night "Hold on Sadie. Daddy will be home soon."

Lying curled on his side, Sam drifted close to sleep clutching the bunny as the beautiful image of Jules nursing Sadie danced in his head.

Sam opened his eyes and looked into the darkness. It was strange but he could have sworn he heard Jules whispering to him "Hold on my love. Help is coming."

He closed his eyes again and allowed sleep to take him into sweet dreams of his girls.


	10. Psychologist, Mel's Slip & Team 3's Find

**Psychologist, Mel's Slip & Team 3's Find**

* * *

 _ **Thirty**_ _ **Hours Missing – SRU HQ Briefing Room and General Braddock's Library**_

It was six am and Greg had entered the briefing room with coffee in one hand and the cane in the other. Team Six was on duty now and he saw they were diligently making contacts with police departments along Autoroute 40 N. The BOLO and APBs had been updated with the information that Spike and Cameo had located and an image of Yawls from his military days showing what he would look like with short hair and no beard.

Greg located Bill Federman. Bill had moved from the TL position of Team Four and became the Sergeant of Team Six when it was formed a few years ago. Bill was a good Sergeant with a long history with SRU. Greg asked "Bill any hits this morning?"

Bill shook his head and said "No. Nothing so far. However Ed called and said that the team and Blaze's unit have hunkered down at Montreal's SRU HQ. The new Sergeant of their Team One, a Remington Davidson, insisted that they get some sleep while his team took over monitoring the programs Spike set up."

Greg grinned and nodded. So Remington was the new Sergeant in Montreal. He was a good man. Sam and Remington had hit it off at that SWAT competition. Remington was so angry when the local officers in the Hat got in his way and the hitman was able to fire at Nealy causing Jules to be pulled off that roof.

As bad as that competition had been, it had forged good working relations between Toronto, Montreal, Regina, Winnipeg and Vancouver SRU departments.

Xing Fa, who was now the techie for Team Six, came up to Greg and said "The video feed to Jules is about to go live. I've set it up on the large screen for you."

"Thank you Xing. The psychologist should be here shortly" Greg responded and walked over to the chair he had normally sat in.

It was strange to be back in this room. Greg missed it every single day. But he was enjoying his teaching at the academy more than he would have ever expected. The cadets were bright and energetic and so willing to learn. Greg could see that he was making a difference, but in a different way now.

The video came on and Greg smiled. He saw Jules and Sadie and Sadie was all bright smiles so early in the morning. Jules still looked tired but he saw all the Braddock's and Mason sitting around her. She was being well taken care of.

Jules said as she waved Sadie's hand "Say morning to PaPa Greg, Sadie."

Sadie babbled happily.

Greg heard the guys in the briefing room lightly chuckle and he turned and saw the smiles on their faces. He turned back to Jules and Sadie "Good morning Sadie. I hope you are being good for your mommy."

Jules nodded and said "Sadie's been an angel since we got here. I think it is because so many look similar to her daddy. She is getting spoiled rotten here."

"As she should be" Greg said with a smile knowing when they got back he would do some spoiling of his own.

Jules asked "Is the psychologist there yet? Any additional leads?"

Greg answered "No to both questions. How are you holding up? Did you sleep at all?"

Jules' eyes flickered a bit as she said "I slept a little. A dream woke me up. We have to find Sam. I don't know how but I know he is being hurt. I have a sense that he is somewhere where we have been before. It is niggling at me."

Greg said "Tell me about the dream. You two have a rare connection Jules. It surprised all of us how often you two could communicate without speaking a single word. It was like you know what each other is thinking. Maybe Sam was trying to communicate with you."

Jules bounced Sadie on her knee as she related the dream. Sadie was becoming more restless in her arms as Jules concluded "The log bridge is still there. When Sam and I honeymooned in Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan we went looking for it. We actually fell into the water as we played Queen of the log."

Greg chuckled, "Queen of the log? Thought that was King of the log?"

Jules grinned "You remember, I bested Sam when he was six _and_ at the SWAT competition. So it is Queen of the log."

"Yes I remember that. I have word that Remington Davidson is now the Sergeant of the Montreal SRU team. The guys are resting there until we can find a clue as to what direction to send them. Remington's team is keeping tabs on Spike's programs" Greg shared.

"Good. The team needs some sleep. I appreciate everything everyone is doing" Jules stated.

The psychologist stood in the door way unnoticed for the moment. He knew his way to the briefing room and had waved off the shocked Winnie when he had entered. He arrived in time to hear Jules' dream. That was one time he had got it all wrong. He had rectified his mistake though. It was a tough sell to the Chief but he had made a strong case that they could remain on the same team.

He liked this team and Parker. The events of last year made him sad. It was a true loss to SRU that Parker's injuries prevented him from returning.

His eyes landed on the little girl in Callaghan's lap. She was getting very fussy. He sucked in a breath as he saw the man that came forward to take her.

Toth strode forward projecting dominance and the first thing out of his mouth was "Braddock said he had two sisters. He never said he had a twin brother. Damn, his Special Forces training made him good at lying. I never picked up that on the lie detector."

Greg turned at the voice of the man he disdained. Standing there was the man that ripped his team to shreds and caused them all pain. Dr. Toth.

Jules glanced at Scott as he took Sadie then back at the man she had mixed feelings about. He was the reason she finally realized that things would never change and that she decided to go to Sam. He was the reason that Boss nearly quit and Sam and she almost got put on other teams. But he was also the reason Sam and she were authorized to remain on Team One and be allowed to date.

But his words about Sam pissed her off. She stated in a hard, no-nonsense voice as her eyes flashed with fire "Sam does not lie. Scott is his cousin not his brother."

Scott heard the tension and quipped, "The older, original version."

Zach quipped "Ah but Sam is the younger and improved version."

Greg sighed audibly then said with barely concealed frustration "Toth … for once can't you enter a room without upping the anxiety levels?"

Toth realizing his mistake backtracked a bit and said "I apologize for my statement. Jules you and Sam have a very lovely daughter."

Sadie snuggled into the crook of Scott's shoulder and cooed out her new favorite sound "da da da da da da dada dada da."

Scott's eyes widened and then softly he said "No sweetie I'm Uncle Scott. Dada will be home soon. You wait and see." Then he went to sit down so Jules could work with Greg and who he assumed was the psychologist.

Greg took a deep breath and buried his disdain in order to get the information they needed. He said "I assume you were the psychologist that dealt with Private Yawls."

Dr. Toth nodded "Yes. I have brought my notes."

Greg waved to a chair and said "Sit down please."

Jules asked "What can you tell us? Who are we dealing with and can you shed any light on why he would go after Sam?"

Toth sat down and looked quickly at Greg then Jules. He opened his file and said "I dealt with a great many soldiers over the years. He does not stand out in my memory. But I do have my notes and I reviewed them before coming in."

Flipping to a page he said "Private Abner I. Yawls was stationed in Kandahar for a year. He was assigned as a clerk in Colonel Thomas Sutton's office. Prior to that he had been to boot camp and spent six months as a clerk at Downsville. There was nothing remarkable in his military file before he had his breakdown."

"His breakdown occurred in the Colonel's office. In attendance were Colonel Sutton, Major Plouffe, Lieutenant Blain and Master Corporal Simons. Other clerks were in the outer office. Private Yawls was sent to get coffee for the group as they were in the midst of planning a mission."

"Private Yawls entered the Colonel's office and handed out the coffees. The report indicates that Major Plouffe complained that his coffee did not have sugar in it. That is when the Private became agitated and began yelling. He pulled out his service weapon and shot at Major Plouffe hitting him in the arm. Lieutenant Blain was able to disarm the Private and the MPs were called."

Toth looked up at Greg and said "The MPs reported that Yawls was in a state of distress and was not making any sense while in custody. The only words they could make any sense of were Plouffe, coffee, pain and mission planning. Everything else was incomprehensible. Private Yawls was transported to Ottawa for a psych evaluation to see if he was competent to be court martialed for shooting an officer."

"That is where I met him. I did a comprehensive evaluation. I diagnosed Private Yawls with borderline personality disorder" Toth stated.

Jules said "Borderline personality disorder affects how a person feels about themselves, how they relate to others and how they behave."

Toth nodded "Yes it does. In Yawls' case as I dug into his history and interviewed his family and I found that he had a pattern of unstable intense relationships. Such as idealizing someone one moment and then suddenly believing the person doesn't care enough or is cruel. Yawls experienced periods of stress-related paranoia and loss of contact with reality, lasting from a few minutes to a few hours. This was coupled with wide mood swings lasting from a few hours to a few days, which included intense happiness, irritability, shame and anxiety."

Greg asked "Did you figure out why he attacked Major Plouffe?"

Shaking his head Toth said "I tried but it never made much sense. As far as we could tell from his service record he had very little interaction with the Major. It would have made more sense if he had gone after the Colonel. Yawls had rapid changes in self-identity and self-image that included shifting goals and values. He often felt he was overlooked. That the Colonel only used him as a coffee errand boy and that his skills in planning were under-utilized."

Jules asked "Besides attacking the Major did Yawls ever present intense anger towards anyone else. And do you know if Yawls had any contact with Sam? Sam was in Kandahar at the time as a JTF2 soldier."

Toth responded "No. I did interview Major Plouffe over the phone to see if there was a reason for Yawls' attack. The only thing the Major shared was that Private Yawls ran into him several times spilling the Colonel's scalding hot coffee on him. He said he dressed the Private down hard for not paying attention to where he was going. He said he had no other interactions with the Private other than when he reported to the Colonel's office and the Private was there."

Jules and Greg looked at one another. Both knew that what Plouffe did to Sam was classified so they could not say anything. From the sounds of it Toth was snowed by Plouffe. They both had a feeling that Plouffe had to have more interaction with Yawls. Both were thinking of Plouffe's MO to blackmail people.

Greg asked "So what happened to Yawls?"

Toth said "I recommended that he was not competent to stand for court martial but that he be placed in a supervised treatment facility. His parents were supportive and requested he be placed in a residential care home in Quebec City where they lived. He was discharged and transferred there. I don't know what happened to him after that."

Jules asked "Would Yawls have the capability to plan an abduction?"

Scratching behind his ear, Toth considered that question a moment. He answered "Possible. But he was unstable when I treated him and that is unlikely to have changed. Not enough to warrant institutionalization but … I'm not really sure. My notes indicate he was highly susceptible to his environment. I recommended a residential placement with non-violent wards."

"When he was in the military psych ward he was near some violent and angry men. He was highly influenced by them and his frequency of losing his temper, being sarcastic, bitter and engaging in physical fights was high. When we moved him into solitary confinement he became more rational and the frequency of those things dropped significantly."

Greg considered that and then looked at Jules. He said "Given this and that Tocci was in charge of his residential home I'm thinking that Tocci is the one that is pulling the strings. That she manipulated Yawls in some way. It doesn't make any sense though why they went after Sam."

Mike Galloway entered the General's Library and straight for the General. He handed him a file and said quietly so only the General could hear "The only mission we can find where Sam was in the same vicinity as Yawls was the one where Yankee died. Sam was in the field constantly after he recovered. He did not return to base after returning to active duty after the explosion. He was stationed continuously at remote camps for about sixteen months."

General Braddock cringed at hearing that. Plouffe had used his son in the worse way. Samuel was lucky to have survived his time in Special Forces. It made his gut clench with rage. But he remained impassive as he continued to listen to Mike's report.

Mike continued his report "I talked to the Colonel and he remembers sending Yawls out for coffee twice as he, Yankee and Sam planned the mission. He also sent Yawls to locate Sam that night. Took Yawls over an hour to locate Sam at the base bar. The Colonel said there was always something off about Yawls. He did not trust him. The investigation shows that many of the files with missing data, like the tunnel maps, were handled by Yawls."

"Sir, Plouffe could have been using him like he used Corporal Merrill. I'm not sure what Plouffe had over him, but he very well could have been blackmailing Yawls in some way. We know Plouffe orchestrated Sam's capture by Qasim. Perhaps Yawls heard something in that planning session and passed information to Plouffe. We never did find out how the insurgents got wind of that meeting. If Plouffe committed treason once he could have done it again" Mike concluded.

What Mike just reported indicated that Yawls may have been the leak that cost Yankee's life. If he passed information to Plouffe that would be treason and something Plouffe could use to blackmail Yawls. The question was now was why was Yawls targeting Sam now? Especially since Plouffe was long dead.

William nodded to Mike and then stood and walked towards Jules. He placed his hand on her shoulder to gain her attention. The three were in the process of discussing symptoms of people with borderline personality disorder.

Jules' looked up at the General and Greg and Toth stopped speaking.

William said "I have a little bit of information I can share. Most is too classified but I will tell you what I can."

Toth found himself sitting up a little straighter. General Braddock had quite a reputation.

The General looked at Greg as he spoke "Yawls and Samuel had minor interaction in Kandahar. He was sent to locate Samuel one night and bring him to the Colonel's office. So Yawls would know Samuel's name at the very least. The Colonel sent Private Yawls to get coffee twice that night for the men planning the mission. That is the extent of Samuel's interactions with Yawls."

"Samuel was injured badly in that mission. After that he was in the field and was not in the Colonel's office again while Yawls was stationed there. I believe that Plouffe may have been blackmailing Yawls. That mission encountered difficulties we were never able to understand. We have some probable explanations now but I am not a liberty to say more than that."

"Suffice to say. If Plouffe was blackmailing Yawls, it might account for his attack on Plouffe." Then William asked "If Yawls has this borderline personality disorder, is it possible that he shifted his anger at Plouffe to Sam?"

Dr. Toth nodded "Yes, yes that could happen. Individuals with BPD feel emotions more easily, more intensely, and longer than most people. Their emotions may repeatedly comeback and persist a long time. As a result, it may take more time for them to return to a stable emotional baseline following a deep emotional experience."

He continued "They also often engage in idealization and devaluation of others, alternating between high positive regard and great disappointment or hatred. If the object of his hatred is dead as in the case of Major Plouffe, then Yawls may have experienced transference. If he associates Sam in any way with the Major then it is possible that hatred is now focused on him."

Greg suggested "Perhaps we could contact the Major's family."

Jules asked "Do we really want to re-open old wounds and cause them more pain? Asking them to relive Aaron's death and the Major's madness."

Greg looked at Jules. It was nice of her to consider the Plouffe family. The Major was certainly the black sheep. He grimaced a bit not wanting to bad mouth an SRU officer but then said "You will remember that Aaron had an unfounded dislike of Sam. He gave him loads of trouble even before that day in Rogue Park. Maybe the family overheard something that might connect Sam and Yawls?"

He went to take off a hat he was not wearing, old habits die hard. Greg ended up rubbing his face with his hands for a moment then he said "I could call Superintendent Plouffe. I could be discreet and delicate in my questioning."

Jules nodded "Okay. Perhaps he can shed some light but realistically I doubt that will happen. The Major was not well liked by his family."

General Braddock stated "We did thorough interviews with the family as part of the investigation. The Major's brother, David, indicated that his son Aaron was the only one that had any regular interaction with the Major. But I agree it should be a path we take to understand what is going on."

William and Mike then excused themselves to go get copies of all the interviews with Plouffe's family to review them for any possible connections.

Jules, Greg and Dr. Toth spent the next hour or so discussing Yawls and Tocci developing psychological profiles and trying to figure out why they were targeting Sam. But they came to the conclusion that they needed additional information. They would need to wait until Team Three had searched both homes.

Before hanging up Greg said "I'll wait until a reasonable hour of the morning then I'll contact Superintendent Plouffe. I will also place a call to Yawls' parents. Jules, I promise to contact you with any information I find."

Jules responded "We will be in touch if the General finds any connections."

Greg nodded and said "Take care of yourself and Sadie. Sam would want that first and foremost."

Giving Greg a small smile, Jules said "Copy that Boss."

Greg grinned. He missed hearing that on a daily basis. It was nice that they all still called him Boss. He had gotten so used to that. When Sadie was placed in Jules' lap he waved to her and said "Bye bye Sadie. See you again soon."

Sadie smiled at the sound of Greg's voice and babbled happily.

When the video call ended Jules looked to Sadie and said "Breakfast time Sadie. How about some oatmeal. You love oatmeal." Then she headed to the kitchen with Sadie on her hip to make Sadie some oatmeal.

Jules' thoughts were on Sam as she walked. Sam loved to feed Sadie in the mornings when he was not on shift. He made it such a game of feeding her oatmeal and Sadie was all giggles. Jules hoped she could get Sadie to giggle this morning. Her worries for Sam were weighing heavy on her mind and sounds of Sadie's laughter would help.

* * *

 _ **Thirty-One Hours Missing – La Grange aux Hiboux – Saguenay**_

Melpomene had landed in Saguenay and rented a car with no problems. She had laughed at the couple from the U.S. trying to rent a car speaking in only English. The rental car clerk only spoke French. When she spoke up in French the rental clerk processed her first. They spent some time making fun of travelers who failed to have any understanding of local languages.

She asked for suggestions for a nice breakfast restaurant and a local spa. The clerk was very friendly and promptly made a few suggestions. So Melpomene left with a free upgrade on her rental, no questions asked about using a credit card in a different name than her driver's license. She had offered that her companion was getting their luggage and wanted her to go get the car. The clerk bought it without batting an eye.

The short drive to La Grange aux Hiboux was nice in the early morning hour. The restaurant was located not too far from the airport and was on Rue Mars across from the Rivière Saguenay. It afforded a breathtaking waterfront view of the fjord.

Melpomene checked her watch and saw that it was just after seven am now. The restaurant had delicious breakfast cuisine and it was a little pricey, but she deserved the best. She would just use the same credit card here when she was done.

She sat back and sipped her expresso and looked at the view. She had another hour to kill until the spa opened and she could get her facial and fix her nail. But that was okay she was enjoying the lazy morning. Soon enough she would have to get to work and make sure Yawls completed his task.

Waving over the waitress Melpomene said "S'il vous plaît apportez-moi un autre croissant avec plus de cette délicieuse confiture de mûre. Je vais prendre une autre tasse de expresso aussi."  
(Please bring me another croissant with more of that delicious blackberry jam. I'll take another cup of expresso too.)

The waitress nodded and went to gather the items.

Melpomene sighed. The life of luxury would soon be hers.

After spending another hour sipping coffee Melpomene asked for the bill and pulled out the credit card with her ward's name on it. The waitress took the card and headed from the table.

Within a few minutes the waitress was back and she said "Madame cette carte a été refusée. Avez-vous une autre forme de paiement?"  
(Madam this card was declined. Do you have another form of payment?)

Frustrated Melpomene pulled out her own credit card and handed it over. She had forgotten the daily limits on the cards. The rental car was just under the limit. This meal put it over the limit. Damn she should have brought another ward's card too. Now she would have to pay for the nails with her card too.

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Three**_ _ **Hours Missing – Melpomene's Apartment – Quebec City**_

Rollie and Lance looked around the apartment of Melpomene Tocci. Team Three had driven straight through to Quebec City. That was a long five and a half hour drive. But using their flashing lights they had been able to shave off a full hour from their travel time. It helped that the highways were less congested in the middle of the night too.

They arrived at three thirty am and Rollie insisted that they rent a hotel room and everyone get at least four hours sleep. By eight am they were all refreshed with a few hours sleep and quick showers. The team ate a quick breakfast at Timmy's and grabbed large coffees to go.

Rollie then contacted the local police to gain access to Melpomene's apartment. It was now nine am, they had waited for thirty minutes for the local officer to show up and allow them access. This was not their jurisdiction so they had to wait. It had frustrated every single one of them.

They all entered the apartment and spread out in different rooms. Mike was in the main bedroom, Phil was in a home office. Tyler was in the kitchen and Rollie and Lance were in the main room. Rollie wanted to keep the rookie close for a few reasons.

One was he was the team rookie and therefore required more supervision. Two was that he could see that Lance was not dealing well with the fact that his friend's girlfriend was involved. Rollie saw the dejection and withdrawn looks on Lance's face. Not the best way to begin with a new team. They knew Lance was not involved but the association was still tough to work through.

Lance sighed and turned to Rollie, "Sarge I feel like this is my fault somehow. If I had not tried out for SRU."

Rollie put a hand on Lance's shoulder "Where would any of this be your fault? We have no idea yet why or how they targeted Sam. Like Greg said last night, this could be military motivated. Come on, let's keep looking and see if we can find anything that will help locate Sam."

There was a knock on the open door and both turned to look.

Lance moved forward and said "Joseph. What are you doing here?"

Joseph had knocked and stood at the door because he did not want to step into this apartment ever again in his lifetime. Joseph thought he sucked when it came to choosing women. Melpomene was involved in the kidnapping of an officer.

His previous string of girlfriends had been bad too. One was in jail for selling drugs, one had cheated on him and one told him she became a lesbian because he sucked in bed. He just could not pick a winner to save his life. Maybe it was time to just forget women altogether and become a monk.

Joseph stood at the door and said "I came to tell you we have the warrant to search Yawls' residence. It is across town."

Rollie called out to his team "Mike, Tyler and Phil stay here and keep searching. Lance and I will head over to Yawls' place."

The three answered "Copy that" from where they were searching.

In the office, Phil pulled out a drawer and rifled through the paperwork in there. He flipped the drawer over and dumped the contents on the desk and saw a large envelope taped to the bottom. Phil ripped it off and opened it. Inside he found a file folder and pulled it out. It was marked Yawls.

He opened the file and couldn't believe his eyes. Phil quickly called to Rollie as he raced to the main room "Hey Sarge, I think I found something that will help."

Rollie stopped just outside the door and turned back to Phil "What did you find?"

Phil quickly walked to Rollie and handed the file to him "It looks like notes on Yawls mental condition. She has made several notations with Sam's name in it. Sam's home address is written in there and isn't that Jules' father's address?"

Rollie flipped through the file and his stomach churned as he began to read the notes. His eyes landed on the last page and he nearly puked.

The last page had a picture of Sam, Jules and Sadie outside their home. Sam's face was marked with a red x with the words 'you need to die, the position belonged to my Joseph, you will not ruin my plans' written next to it.

Below that, in the same messy handwriting was 'Melpomene Tocci and Joseph Bissonnette cordially invite you to the celebration of their engagement and Joseph's promotion to Toronto's premiere SRU'.

Rollie glared at Joseph and said sharply "You were going to marry this woman?"

Joseph's eyes widened "No. God no. I was thinking of breaking up with her. I never considered marriage. Why do you say that?"

Rollie showed him the last page.

Joseph's face lost all color. He gripped the railing outside the apartment as his legs turned to rubber. He looked to Lance and his voice was shaky "I didn't know. I swear I didn't know."

Rollie watched the reaction. Either Joseph was a damned good actor or he was shocked beyond belief like he was.

Joseph turned and retched into the bushes.

Lance put his hand on friend's back and looked to Rollie and said "I believe him. He did not know."

When he finished retching Joseph sank to the ground. He ran a shaky hand through his hair and looked up at Rollie "How can I help?"

The team had all gathered when they heard Phil and the watched Joseph's reaction.

Mike pulled a bottle of water out of his pack and crouched down next to Joseph as he said "Here, rinse your mouth."

They waited until Joseph rinsed. Joseph nodded his thanks and looked up at Rollie.

Rollie said "On the way to Yawls' place I'm going to have you talk with Greg Parker. I want you to tell him everything you know about her. Even if it doesn't seem important."

Joseph nodded. Lance helped his friend to stand and make it out to the SUVs.

Rollie turned to the rest of the team "Tear this place apart. She might have things hidden in there that will help."

"Copy" they all said as they headed back into the apartment.

Rollie pulled out his phone and called SRU HQ. He had information to share. That bitch was clearly the one planning this. Those notes confirmed it. Greg was going to want to speak with Joseph too. Hopefully he could provide information that might lead to the whereabouts of Sam.

.

* * *

 _ **AN:** Hope you are enjoying old home week with the sprinkling of many of the OC's that have interacted with Sam over the years in this story. I love to connect them in hopefully plausible ways._

 _Kudos to all those that figured out the Army psychologist was Toth. I figured that Greg would not like him after what he did and Jules would have mixed feelings. Toth is still arrogant so I created a wee bit of a set down for him from Jules._


	11. Lungs, I Have A Map & Winnie's Tenacity

**Lungs, I Have A Map & Winnie's Tenacity**

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Four**_ _ **Hours Missing – Basement of a Home – La Dore**_

Miserable wet, hacking coughs racked Sam's body shooting pain through his chest. When he finished coughing he lay on the ground sucking in air in an erratic pattern. Sitting up was impossible with the position of his hands and the amount of chain length but he felt the desperate need to sit up.

The coughing fit he knew was the result of several things. Inhaling water in his attempt to get something to drink was one. The trauma to his chest was another. Lying on a cold damp floor in wet clothes was a third. And the last was the broken rib.

Ever since it broke he tried to take deep breaths but it got increasingly difficult as the pain radiated through his body. Add to that, that as he slept, his breathing must have become very shallow. Sam could tell that the sun was high in the sky via the window in the basement. So he must have slept for quite some time.

That was good on one hand. His body got much needed rest and he hadn't been subjected to more beatings. But on the other hand, the result was that he now felt the tightness in his chest and he was hacking up a lung. Although, given how cold and damp it was down here and his limited mobility that was bound to happen.

Sam knew he had to be careful with his lungs ever since Merrill's bullet to the chest damaged them. It was something he was cognizant of during the cold winter months. He always took precautions even though the guys on the team were not aware of them. He wore a tight fitting synthetic base layer to regulate his body temperature and wick away moisture from his skin during the coldest and wettest parts of the year to keep his chest warm and dry.

Jules knew this though and didn't rat him out.

It was stupid but his pride didn't want to take the knock that he had to take extra precautions with his lungs. He wished he was wearing one of those shirts now. Not only would it have helped keep him warm in this cold, damp basement it would have provided some measure of binding for his chest which would have helped him with pain management.

Sam moaned as the desire to cough again swept through him.

As he coughed and hacked all rational thought left his mind as he reeled in pain and tried to get air into his lungs after each cough. When the episode of coughing stopped this time he lay very still, breathing shallowly trying in vain to control his pain. It was a losing battle as the pain escalated.

He was kicking himself for his method of getting a drink. At the time he knew it was a risk. But then he did not have a broken rib, only cracked.

It had been a calculated risk. If his rib was not broken it would have been an acceptable risk. But then the sadistic bastard broke his rib and now that risk moved into the unacceptable realm.

Sam wished like hell he had included a broken rib into his calculations. Maybe it was time to start adjusting his risk calculations. Maybe time to move in the directions that Ed had continuously over the years loudly and forcibly insisted.

That thought almost had Sam chuckling. If not for the pain it would have caused or the coughing it was sure to produce he would have. Ed would surely be shocked to hear him thinking about moving more towards his version of measuring risk.

But he had Sadie to think about now. Yes he always had Jules to think about. No he did not want to make her a widow. But he knew she would have support if anything ever did happen to him.

However, little Sadie was quite another story. His sweet little daughter needed both a mommy and a daddy. He needed to change so that he could be here as she grew up. Not only to protect her but to provide her with a role model of what a real man was.

A real man cared for his family and strove to make the world a better place through his actions and words. A real man treated women with respect and honor and encouraged them to go for their dreams. A real man was a partner to a strong and beautiful woman. A real man knew that beauty came from the inside and ensured that the women in his life knew they were beautiful. A real man loved, laughed and cried.

Yeah, Ed would be shocked to hear that he was going to have to modify his set of risk measures.

Sadie needed him as much as she needed Jules. He wanted and needed to be there to help shape her into the strong, beautiful, caring woman she would become.

Besides, he hadn't even heard her call him daddy yet.

That was one thing he was waiting for. Sam spent hours reading the baby books that Jules' had bought. He almost knew them by heart. He had repeated the sounds ma and da to Sadie for nearly a month now. At six months the books said that she would start making those sounds.

He didn't care that Sadie would not associate the sound da to him until she was about a year old but he really wanted to hear her babble dada. That would be so cool he thought.

Sam's thoughts were interrupted by another round of hacking.

The pain reached a fevered peak and Sam's body took him into blackness to give him respite. The coughing stopped as he finally fell unconscious.

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Five**_ _ **Hours Missing – Outside Secluded Vacation Home – La Dore**_

Melpomene drove up to her Grandmother's vacation home. It was tucked off the beaten path and surrounded by tall sugar maple, birch and fir trees. It was a beautiful little spot and Melpomene knew that is why her mother and uncle were fighting tooth and nail over owning it.

She was in good spirits. The spa that the car rental clerk referred her too gave her a new customer deal. She not only got a free facial, hair styling and pedicure, they only charged a small amount for fixing her nails. She was able to use the ward's card to cover it after all.

Melpomene wiggled her fingers and admired the freshly painted nails. She loved the orange-red color she selected this time. It reminded her of the color of the sugar maple trees in fall. Melpomene looked in the rearview mirror and admired the hair style too. They had straightened her naturally curly hair and it was an attractive style for her. She sighed and thought gotta love the fashion sense of the French.

Stepping out of the car she noticed Yawls sitting in the rocking chair on the porch. He looked withdrawn. Damn. That meant he was losing the fire she had built in him. Something must have happened.

She had to rectify this and quickly. Then she wondered, perhaps Sam is dead. That could account for Yawls' demeanor. No more vengeance to take out.

Melpomene sashayed up to the porch swinging her tush in a manner she knew men found alluring. When she reached the steps of the porch, Melpomene asked "Why so sad Abner?"

Yawls stopped rocking and looked at Melpomene. He thought Melpomene rather than Mel. She hated it when people called her Mel. She said Mel was a guy's name and she was all woman. He noticed the change in her hair.

He said "Sam said some things. They won't leave me alone. I haven't slept much."

With slight irritation Melpomene queried "What did your enemy say?"

Yawls' eyes took on a lost look as he said "He said he was an innocent like me. That Plouffe used him too. He was only a soldier following orders of his superiors. That Plouffe didn't hate him."

Melpomene could see her work unraveling. God damned SRU officer. He probably used his superior negotiation skills to get into Yawls' head. All SRU officers had to have those skills. They used their words more than their guns. That's why they were the cream of the police force.

But she was better. She knew what buttons to push in Yawls.

She stated "He was lying. Your enemy would say anything to try and get out of the punishment he deserves. He is the reason Plouffe used and abused you. If it weren't for Sam Braddock, Plouffe would not have done all those disgusting things to you and made you less of a man if he didn't hate Sam."

"You have to be stronger. You have to assert your dominance to regain your manhood. Making Sam feel pain and then killing him will cure you. You must vanquish your enemy's enemy. Remember the enemy of your enemy is your enemy. Sam must suffer and he must die for you to have your vengeance."

As Melpomene talked the look in Yawls' eyes changed. She grinned as she saw the hatred, anger and pain building in him again.

She continued "Have you made him hurt?"

Yawls smiled and his voice was sing-songish "Yeah. I've beaten him several times. The first time was when I got him out of your car in the barn. Then again before we left, I kicked him so hard he lost consciousness like how Plouffe did to me. Then when we got here I strung him up and I punched him. It pissed me off that he didn't yell and scream like me. But I fixed that. I hit him with a pipe. He screamed then. Boy howdy, did he scream."

"I had fun pouring hot coffee on him too. I'm no coffee errand boy anymore. When I poured it in his face he got real scared and I could see the pain it caused him. Then I showed him the bunny and pulled out the stuffing and he went pale. He will do anything I say now. He knows we can kill Sadie. He is under my control now. Whipped and cowed like he should be."

Yawls looked at Melpomene and his eyes got wild "I made him kneel like a dog and say yes sir. Just like Plouffe made me do. Then I poured hot coffee on him like Plouffe did to me before he raped me each time."

Melpomene smiled "How did that make you feel?"

"Good. Very good. Like a real man. I slept a little after that" Yawls said.

"Are you going to rape him like Plouffe raped you?" Melpomene asked.

She had a desire to watch that but she knew it would not happen. Melpomene only asked so she could provoke an intense emotional reaction in Yawls. She needed him completely back in that head space so he could kill Sam.

Yawls' eyes got wide and a disgusted look crossed his face "No."

His hands began to shake and his stomach tied in knots as bile started to rise. He rose and began to pace. As much as he wanted to hurt Sam in all the ways Plouffe hurt him that was one thing he could not bring himself to do. He had puked his guts out every time Plouffe made him fuck him. He was sick every time Plouffe did it to him too.

No he could not do that. Not that. No, Sam would pay in all other ways but that way. There were so many ways to cause pain. Plouffe was a master at causing pain. He had learned how to cause pain well, being the recipient of it for so long. And it was all because Plouffe hated Sam.

Everything that happened to him happened to him because of Sam. Every debasing thing, every kick, every punch, every burn from coffee, every perverse sexual act that he had to perform or he was subjected to was because Plouffe hated Sam.

Yawls began muttering "Enemy of my enemy is my enemy" as he paced.

Melpomene watched the agitation grow and smiled. She turned and headed back to the car to get her travel bag. As she did, part of what Yawls said hit her. He said after he got Sam out of her car. No. He didn't. He didn't do that. Did he?

She turned and yelled "You used the rental car to abduct Sam, right?"

Yawls stopped pacing at the sharp angry tone and he looked at Melpomene and answered "No, I couldn't remember where you parked it. I remembered where you parked your car though so I used it instead."

"YOU STUPID IDIOT! They will know that I'm involved now. How could you be so stupid? I told you to use the rental. What other stupid things did you do? You used the card I gave you for gas didn't you?" Melpomene shouted angrily.

Yawls flinched and cowed as he stammered out "I tried … it wouldn't work. I had to use my card for gas."

Melpomene was reeling. The SRU would surely know she was involved now. Oh crap she used her card for breakfast. They would surely look into her history and find out about her Grandmother's vacation home now.

She strode towards Yawls and yelled as she pointed to the door "Inside now. We need to find someplace else to go. They will surely find us here. We cannot leave Sam's body here or they will be hunting for both of us. We need to find a place where they will never find his body. Without a body they cannot convict you."

As Yawls followed her inside he muttered "I'm good at planning. I have a map. I'm sure I can find just the right place."

Melpomene bitterly said "You better or else your enemy wins and you cannot let that happen."

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Six**_ _ **Hours Missing – SRU HQ – Dispatcher's Desk**_

Winnie was doing follow up research on Melpomene Tocci. The Medicine Hat police department had been unable to locate the rental car even though they did a thorough search of the city. To Winnie that was not enough.

She was known for her tenacity and she let it come out in full bloom right now.

Winnie had contacted the rental car company and persisted through unhelpful people until she got to someone that was able to help. She had been in touch with their technical department and their loss prevention department. Winnie found out that the company recently installed GPS trackers on some of their inventory of rental cars. She lucked out to find that the one rented by Melpomene and paid for with the card of one of her wards had the GPS tracker installed.

Winnie had gotten a call back from the rental car company informing her that they finally located the car in Regina, Saskatchewan in the long term parking lot of the airport. She had immediately put a call into airport security at Regina International and asked them to run the name Melpomene Tocci to search for any flight she may have taken. Winnie needed a destination. She was currently on hold with them.

She tapped her foot in a fast motion. It was the only outward sign of her frustration at the amount of time it was taking for them to research the flights.

Winnie's thoughts floated to the progress they had made so far. It was noon and Sam had been gone thirty-six hours. The clock was ticking so close to the forty-eight hour window. They needed something new to go on.

They had gotten a few breaks and leads but they still had no final destination. Team One was now in La Tuque, Quebec which was about three hours northeast of Montreal waiting for the next lead. Spike's program had received a ping for Yawls' credit card at a gas station there. Unfortunately, the card was used last night around seven pm. The gas station experienced a glitch in their system and the card data from yesterday was not processed until today.

Where the van went from La Toque was anyone's guess, they had a full seventeen hour lead on the team now. The destination was still unknown because there were no satellite feeds that Cameo could tap into there. The van could have a destination in La Tuque, backtracked to Montreal or taken any one of the three main roads out of La Tuque. If the van headed onto one of the forest roads it might be impossible to locate it.

Winnie knew that the General was requesting permission to reposition the satellites but that was going to take time to work through that red tape. Apparently, repositioning military satellites was tricky business. Winnie learned from Cameo that they were normally positioned over major metropolitan areas. La Tuque was only a small blip in the road way beyond a metropolitan area.

The airport security agent she was holding for came back on the line and gave Winnie some information. She thanked them and then called out "Sarge I have a destination for Tocci."

Greg rushed to the desk "Where?"

Winnie stated "Melpomene is listed on a flight out of Regina, Saskatchewan at eight pm Regina time last night. That would be ten our time. It was a direct flight to Saguenay, Quebec. It landed at six am this morning. Saguenay is on the same time as us. I'll contact Spike and see if he can find any uses of any of the ward's credit cards in Saguenay."

Greg said "Good work Winnie. I'll let Team Three know. How far is Quebec City from Saguenay? She might be trying to get home in a roundabout way."

Winnie pulled up a map program and quickly entered the data. She stated "Via QC-175 S it is one hundred and thirty miles, about a two and a half hour drive."

She started pulling up numbers and said "I'll alert Saguenay PD. I'll also contact airport security and have them run checks to see if she booked another flight and have them take her photo to all rental car agencies at the airport to see if we can find out if she rented a car."

Greg nodded and then said "Have the local PD check all bus stations too. I'll send Xing and Curtis to help you. I am waiting for Yawls' parents to call me. I'm expecting it any time now."

Winnie nodded and got to work.

.

* * *

 _ **AN:**_ _Next chapter nearly finished too but need to do my normal reread of it to ensure all details are correct. I split what I wrote into two chapters, based on how far I got in my editing. That way I could get something published today. Will have two very busy days with work and personal commitments, so I will not be able to post again until late my Friday night._


	12. Good Boy, He's In La Dore, Page From

**Good Boy, He's In La Dore, Page From Yvonne & A Safer Way**

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Six**_ _ **Hours Missing – SRU HQ – Briefing Room**_

Greg headed back to the briefing room and updated the rest of the team. Curtis and Xing hustled out to Winnie. Finding nothing to give them another lead in Yawls' residence, Team Three quickly headed out for Saguenay after getting the information from Greg.

As he sat down to await the call form the Yawls', Greg took several breaths to relax. He had been frustrated trying to make contact with Yawls' parents. They were on vacation and it took some time to track them down.

They were currently in Greece. Yawls' older brother, Cyrus, said he his parents called him every day from Greece about noon, which was six pm in Greece to check in. Cyrus said when they called today he would direct them to call Greg immediately.

Greg had tried to get information on Yawls from his siblings but unfortunately Cyrus had no contact with his brother since Abner had left for the Army. He said they were like oil and water and it was best for family harmony for them not to interact. Cyrus also shared that his sisters might know something but when Abner went nuts they were all married and had already moved away from Quebec City so it was unlikely.

Cyrus indicated that his parents did not involve the rest of the family in much of the discussions of what happened. His one conversation with his father about it only touched on vague references that Abner felt anger towards a Major. He shared that his parents seemed to feel sense of shame and guilt for Abner's actions. They ensured that Abner was well-cared for but it was sort of a taboo in their family to discuss what Abner did in Kandahar. Greg had called the sisters and like Cyrus had predicted, got much the same input.

The conversation with Joseph however, did shed additional light on Melpomene. As Greg and Jules suspected, it was becoming clearer that she was the one calling the shots. Joseph was a bit reluctant at first to comment much on her in relation to his relationship to her. But as he opened up and shared, it painted a picture of a vain and controlling person with delusional thinking.

From what Greg gathered Joseph was a sincere young officer that had really bad luck with the women he chose to date. Joseph had apologized profusely thinking he was the cause for this. Greg assured him that no one blamed him. It was only unfortunate that the woman he was dating was delusional and controlling.

Greg's phone rang and he answered "Hello this is Greg Parker with … Toronto Strategic Response Unit."

That felt odd to say for Greg. He was and he wasn't. In this case he was working with them as a consultant. So for now he was.

 _[Mrs. Yawls said "Hello, Mr. Parker this is Peg Yawls. My son Cyrus indicated you needed to speak to us about Abner. Is he okay?"]_

"Mrs. Yawls how much did your son Cyrus tell you about why I needed you to call?" Greg asked.

 _["Not much. I called and he quickly said it was urgent that I call you and that it was about Abner. I hung right up and called you. He's not hurt is he?" Peg asked with concern.]_

Greg took a moment. Cyrus really did not help out much. He stated "Mrs. Yawls."

 _["Peg please. Mrs. Yawls is so formal" Peg interrupted.]_

"Okay, Peg. First I'm not sure how your son Abner is. We are trying to locate him. This will be hard to hear but your son is suspected of abducting a police officer. I wanted to speak with you to see if Abner might have indicated to you in any way why he might abduct our SRU officer" Greg relayed.

 _["Oh my. No. Abner would not do such a thing. Abner is a good boy" Peg denied, unable to wrap her head around the information.]_

Greg rubbed his head with one hand as he said "I'm afraid it is true Peg. We have video evidence that he abducted an officer by the name of Sam Braddock. Does that name sound familiar to you at all? Has Abner ever mentioned that name?"

 _[Peg looked at her husband in confusion and said "Cy, they say Abner abducted a SRU police officer by the name of Sam Braddock. I've never heard Abner say that name. Have you?"_

 _Cy Yawls sat on the bed in thought. Then he held out his hand for the phone. Cy turned it on speaker phone and then said "I've heard that name only recently. Abner was doing so well for so long."_

" _But about a month ago I noticed he was getting more and more agitated. He was angry more often. I visited him about two weeks ago before the missus and I headed out for our extended vacation."_

" _When I got there he was pacing. He was muttering enemy of my enemy is my enemy. It was very out of character for him for the past four or five years. I asked him how he was feeling. He looked at me with eyes I haven't seen in a long while. He was stable for a long time."_

" _The doctors said he could come and go like that. But … well I asked him who his enemy was. He looked at me and said he had to go get the coffee. That scared me. He was slipping back. We worked so hard with his doctors over the years. We never did find out what triggered it. Abner would never say. But he truly hated a Major by the name of Plouffe. The man he tried to kill."_

 _Cy stood and looked out the window of his hotel room. He didn't see the view. His mind was picturing the last time he saw his son. Abner was so angry. It made him sad._

 _He continued "I spoke with his residential care provider a Miss Tocci. You should speak with her if you haven't. She said that Abner was doing fine most days and not to worry. That he would have ups and downs. She said she would work with him and get him to calm down."_

" _Any way Abner came out of the kitchen and instead of having only a hot cup of coffee like he normally did he was carrying a hot cup and an iced one. I asked him who the second cup was for. He said it was for Sam."_

 _"I asked him Sam who? I didn't know if they had a new resident. His eyes got scary and he said Sam Braddock. Then he headed back into the kitchen and poured both cups of coffee down the drain as he muttered that enemy of my enemy saying."_

 _Cy turned to his wife as he said "I tried to go to him to see what was going on but Miss Tocci said it was better if I left and that she would get him redirected and contact the doctor to see if a med change was needed. I'm not trained to deal with his BPD so I left him in the attendant's care. My wife spoke to him just last week on the phone and he seemed back to his docile and calm state."_

" _You need to talk to Miss Tocci to get more details. I don't know what else to tell you. Abner is a good boy but he broke down for reasons we have never been able to discern. Something terrible happened to him in Kandahar. I'm certain of that. I just don't know what it is. I never heard him say Sam's name before that day. It was always Plouffe" Cy concluded.]_

Greg had listened to it all and felt more than ever that Melpomene Tocci was the root of this. Especially given what Rollie's team found in her apartment.

He said "Thank you for speaking with me. If you can think of anything else that would help please call. We would like to find your son and bring him and our officer back safely."

 _[Cy said "If I think of anything I will call."_

 _Peg said quickly "Mr. Parker."]_

"Yes" Greg answered.

 _["You said you are trying to locate Abner" Peg said. Then she added "He always answers when I call him. If I call Abner, I might be able to get him to tell me where he is. Maybe talk him into giving up."]_

Greg thought what a break. He smiled and said "That would be good. But first I need my technical guys to patch me in. We will try to get a GPS signal in case he does not tell you where he is."

"However, I must tell you. I have suspicions that your son is being manipulated by Miss Tocci. We have evidence that she is involved in the abduction. So I will need you to be very careful in what you say. My officer's life may depend on it. It is possible that Abner has transferred his hatred of Major Plouffe to Sam. We do not want to provoke him."

 _[Cy asked "Who is this Sam? How would my son even know a Toronto police officer? He has never been to Toronto."]_

"There is a history. Sam was in Kandahar at the same time as your son. They only interacted once, briefly, when Sam was summoned to the Colonel's office. We had been hoping you might shed some light on why Abner would focus on Sam. But as you said, you only heard Abner mention Sam once" Greg explained briefly.

"I will call you when we have the trace set up. Do you have any questions?" Greg asked.

 _[Peg said "No. I'll just try to find out where he is. Speak to him as his mother. You promise you will not harm him."]_

Wow, Greg could not promise that. He answered truthfully "We will do all in our power to bring your son home safely."

 _[Her voice was a bit timorous as she said "Okay, I know this is a bad situation. I hope he has not harmed the officer. But Abner really is a good boy. He is just sick. Abner needs help. I'll wait for your call."]_

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Six**_ _ **Hours Missing – Conference Call Between SRU HQ, General Braddock's Home, Team One in La Tuque, Team Three Enroute to Saguenay and the Yawls' in Greece**_

Greg hung up and called out to Curtis. They quickly set up a tracer program and conferenced in Jules and the Braddocks, Team One with Blaze's unit and Team Three. Greg brought everyone up to date with the information gleaned from Yawls' parents. Everyone was waiting with baited breath as Greg was about to place the call to the Yawls.

Winnie rushed into the briefing room and said "Sarge, Tocci rented a car in Saguenay. I have the make, model and license plate. Sending out a BOLO. Spike also got a hit on a restaurant there and I called. The waitress remembered her. Also spoke with the rental agent via one of the officers. She only speaks French. She recommended a spa. I called and I have an updated description that I added to the BOLO. She has straightened hair now."

"I spoke with the stylist. I'm sorry but she did not have any information on Tocci's destination. But I pulled information on Tocci's grandmother. There is a vacation home that belonged to her and has been in dispute since her death five years ago. The vacation home is in La Dore. La Dore is about two hours' drive from Saguenay and it is also about two and a half hours from La Tugue."

Winnie finished "Maybe the destination is that vacation home in La Dore."

Greg nodded impressed as always with Winnie's skills. She was always the home base member of the team. Greg asked "Did everyone get that?"

Over the conference lines he got "Copy" from everyone.

Ed stated "We are heading there now. I'd rather get moving than wait. If the Yawls' determine another location we will adjust."

Rollie stated "We are four hours out but we will swing through Saguenay on the way to La Dore in case Tocci is still in Saguenay."

General Braddock turned to Mike and Zach "Get us in the air. I want to get to La Dore as fast as possible."

Zach had sat at the computer the moment Winnie said La Dore. He looked at his uncle and stated "No airport. If we take a helo, flight time will be an hour and a half. We can get there before the SRU and Blaze's unit can."

"Make it happen" William stated and then looked at Mason and said "I need you to stay and guard Jules and Sadie."

Jules said "I'm going."

Mason shook his head "No you are not. Think of Sadie. There will be enough people to get to Sam."

"But La Dore is just outside where we honeymooned. I know the area. We got supplies at the local store" Jules protested.

Mark placed a hand on Jules' shoulder "We know the area well too. If you recall we camped there. It is one of my son's favorite places." He turned to William and said "Jeff needs to come. He knows how to track and knows the area like the back of his hand. If they have gone into the forest we could use him."

William nodded "Call him. I want to be ready to leave in fifteen minutes. Full gear, outfit us as needed Mike."

Jules looked at the General "Take a unit medic. My gut tells me Sam is hurt."

Mike said "Drake pack what you need."

"Roger" Drake stated then was out of the room in a flash.

Drake needed to pack carefully for Sam. He recalled Sam had very special needs when it came to medication. Caring for him in Yellow Knife had been a challenge. He smiled when he recalled Sam speaking in Latin and comparing him to a snake because he was so stealthy. He thought the only Latin he knew now was drake, Latin for draco meaning snake or monster.

Greg said "Okay we need to make this call. Everyone mute now."

Then he proceeded to connect with Peg Yawls. She called Abner. Everyone held their breath as it rang four times then was answered.

 _[Yawls answered "Mom?"]_

"Hello dear. We are having a grand time in Greece. I picked you up a jar of pistachio jam from a little farm we visited. I know how much you like pistachios. How are you doing?" Peg asked trying to make her voice sound as normal as possible.

 _[Yawls sat down on the tub. He had just finished going to the bathroom when his mom called. He always answered mom. She was the only one that loved him completely and he felt calm and safe with her._

 _He rubbed his shaky hand on his thigh to get rid of the sweat. "I'm okay Mom."]_

Peg looked nervously at her husband. Cy held her hand as she said "Good. You know you are kind of breaking up. Your cell reception must be a little bad. Are you at home?"

 _[Abner could not lie to his mom so he said "No I'm out."]_

"Oh really! How nice. Where did you go?" Peg asked.

 _[He was about to answer when he heard Melpomene yelling at him to hurry up. He stood and said "I gotta go Mom. Melpomene wants me to hurry up we have to … well she just needs me to hurry up."]_

Peg quickly said "Wait dear, remember you are a good man. You remember that okay. Make your momma proud of you. Find your happy place. I love you son."

 _[Yawls looked in the mirror and said "I love you too Mom. I will be a real man soon. Don't worry."_

 _He hung up._

 _At Melpomene's yell he looked in the mirror once more and his eyes darkened as he said to his reflection "Don't worry I'll be a real man soon Mom. I will be cured soon. Sam just needs to die and I'll be cured."]_

Greg asked "Spike did you get enough?"

"Yeah. He's in La Dore" Spike answered.

Spike then called out the coordinates. They matched the address of Melpomene's grandmother's vacation home. It was the break they all needed.

Greg said to Peg "Thank you Peg. As I said, we will do all in our power to bring your son home safely."

Cy Yawls said "I hope your officer is okay. If you need us to call again just let us know." Then he hung up and hugged his wife as she started to cry.

Greg said "We have confirmation via the subject's comment. Melpomene Tocci is with Yawls in La Dore. Go get our guy. Go get Sam but go careful. We have no idea if they are armed. Take all precautions."

Ed answered "Copy that" as he floored the SUV and sped up. He was gonna make it to La Dore in less than two and a half hours.

General Braddock hugged Jules and said "I'll bring Samuel home to you and Sadie."

Jules nodded and she took Sadie from Scott as William, Scott and Mark headed out. Zach, Mike, Drake and the rest of Mike's unit had already left to prepare.

She looked to Mason and said "Go with them. You heard Yawls. Melpomene is with him. Sadie and I are safe here."

Apollo stepped up and said "Mason, me, Pawn and the rest of the guys can stay here and watch over Jules."

"The General ordered me to stay. So I stay" Mason stated.

Jules looked at him and stated firmly in a commanding tone "Disobey those orders and go. Sam is gonna need you if I cannot be there. I'm giving you new orders. Tell the General I said you needed to go."

Mason saluted and responded "Yes Ma'am. But you know he might just send me back here."

Jules smirked "Not if he knows what is good for him."

Mason chuckled "I see you learned a few things from Mrs. General."

Jules arched a brow "You could say that. Now go."

Mason jogged out of the room to catch up with the rest of the men.

Sadie babbled "da da da dada dada dada da dada."

Jules hugged her close and said "Daddy will be home soon sweetie. Grandpa and all your uncles will see to that."

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Six**_ _ **Hours Missing – Kitchen of a Home – La Dore**_

Yawls entered the kitchen and studied the map again.

Melpomene said in a huffy voice "What took you so long?"

"My mom called" Yawls answered.

Melpomene stood up quickly knocking the chair over and shouted "You answered a call from your mother. How stupid can you get?"

Yawls blinked "I always answer Mom's call. She is in Greece. She called to tell me she got me some pistachio jam."

"Did you tell her where you were?" Melpomene asked as she began to panic.

"No. She said the reception was bad though." He pointed to the map and said "Here is a good place. Along this ridge by the river. It is about a forty minute drive from here and about an hour hike."

Melpomene looked down at her high heels. All she packed was high heels. We need to stop at the store. I need boots if we are going to hike."

She looked at Yawls then stated "We need to leave the van here. You used your card to get gas with it. They will probably know what to look for. We will take my car."

Yawls nodded but then said "There is no trunk in your car. What are we gonna do with him?"

"How bad did you beat up his face?" Melpomene asked?

Shrugging Yawls said "Black eye, bruised jaw."

"Okay so you said you have him under your control. Take the kitchen knife and you can use that to threaten him to keep quiet. We put him in the car with us. If anyone asks he got into a bar fight. Go get him" Melpomene stated.

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Six**_ _ **Hours Missing – Outside General Braddock's Home**_

Mason caught up with them just before them drove off. He looked at the General with a slight bit of humor as he said "Sir."

General Braddock turned "Yes Mason?"

"Um Sir, Jules told me to tell you she is ordering me to go with you. That Blondie will need me because she is not there. The rest of my team will stay and guard Jules and Sadie even though Tocci is in La Dore" Mason stated.

Mark burst out laughing "My God! She's taken a page from Yvonne."

William shook his head as he sighed. Yes Jules fit right in with Braddock women. He would catch hell from Yvonne if he didn't take Mason. Yvonne would side with Jules in a heartbeat.

"Might as well hop in Mason" William said as he got into the jeep.

Mason was not a bit shocked. He had seen Mrs. General in action. But he did school his expression so that he did not reveal his humor at Jules ordering General Badass. Blondie would be proud of Jules. He just hoped he would get the opportunity to tell him.

As Mike drove them to the airfield, William recalled his call with Yvonne. She and the rest of the women wanted to cut their vacation cruise short. It took some doing but he convinced her to stay.

The warm weather would do her health good. It was supposed to be a relaxing trip for her too. But he knew that Yvonne would not relax until they found Sam. He wanted to be able to call her in about two hours and tell her just that.

He turned to Mike and said "Step on it. Samuel is waiting for us."

The jeep lurched forward as Mike slammed his foot on the accelerator and they sped to the airfield.

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Six**_ _ **and a Half Hours Missing – Basement of a Home – La Dore**_

Yawls had come down to get Sam. He was out cold when he unchained him and cut the zip ties on his feet. He left the ones on his hands though.

Now how to wake him up? Yawls didn't want to carry him up the stairs unless he had too. He turned and saw the coffee pot. It was half full with cold coffee. Yawls grabbed it and walked over and dumped it on Sam's face.

Cold liquid splashing in his face roused Sam. He sputtered as the deluge fell on his face. Sam instinctively rolled away from it. A loud hiss of pain escaped as he felt the rib shift. Then he began a hacking fit.

He was in so much pain he just wanted to curl up. But he forced his eyes open and looked up at the man. When the coughing subsided Sam took several breaths as deeply as he could, which was not deep as he should. But he was trying to reduce the pain not increase it.

It took a moment but Sam realized he was no longer chained to the post and his feet were no longer bound. Getting his breathing under better control Sam wheezed out "Who are you and why are you doing this to me? Just tell me that."

Yawls heard the deep wet wheeze and he responded "I already told you. You are the enemy of my enemy."

Sam nodded "I get that you hate Plouffe. He was a bastard. He made my life miserable but I am not your enemy. I don't even know you" Sam said weakly then started another short burst of coughing.

He pulled his arms close trying to stabilize his rib. Then Sam rolled to a seated position and breathing became slightly easier. He moved his feet a bit trying to restore feeling. The pins and needles sensation as they came back to life added to his discomfort. But at least his feet were unbound.

"I brought you coffee. Twice" Yawls said as his irritation increased.

He was invisible, a nobody to Sam. Well this nobody was in charge now Yawls thought.

Sam didn't really have much strength but he looked up and said "Just tell me your name. I'd like to know who is going to kill me."

Yawls liked the defeated tone so he finally shared "Yawls. My name is Abner Yawls. I got you from the bar. It took an hour to find you. I brought you two iced coffees as you planned the mission. I should have been asked to help plan that mission. I can read maps."

Then his eyes got wild "You are gonna see that. I picked out the perfect place for you. No one is ever gonna find your body."

Sam's mind was working as quickly as it could, given his current state. He stared at the man. Sam did not recall the name but he now recalled the face.

A vague memory came to him. He was in Sutton's office. Yankee needed him for a mission. The Colonel saw him look at Yankee's iced coffee and then ordered his aide to get three coffees. He was the private that found him in the bar and that brought the coffee in when he, the Colonel and Yankee planned the mission in which Yankee died.

Was that the reason he was so fixated on coffee and kept burning him with hot coffee then pouring iced coffee on him? What did he ever do … wait something did not make sense. This man hated Plouffe. He thought Plouffe hated him. What kind of twisted reasoning had Yawls thinking that way?

Sam could not figure it out so he thought about what else Yawls said. So he was not going to be killed here. There was still a chance to escape. That is if his body would cooperate. Right about now Sam knew he was in bad shape.

He was dehydrated. The wheezing as he breathed and the coughing and tightness in his chest indicated at least bronchitis if not the beginnings of pneumonia. He was weakened by no food. His body was beat to hell with bruises on top of bruises. He was cold and damp. And let's not forget the broken rib.

By his normal calculations he would make a run for it. But by Ed's calculations he should conserve his energy and look for another way. A safer way.

He looked at the muscular man and knew in his current state that fighting his way out was just not happening. One blow to the chest and it could all be over if the rib punctured his lung. Also it was unlikely he could even manage to get up the stairs by himself let alone out run Yawls.

Ed would be shocked to find out he was using his measure of risk. Hell, Sam was a bit shocked too.

Sam then thought about Jules. What would she do? She would try to connect again. Maybe being friendly and acknowledging those mission planning skills might have the right effect. What would the Boss do? Sam ran through a few scenarios and each time he heard the Boss say the person's name.

He clutched the bunny close to his heart hoping his next words did not result in another blow with the pipe.

Sam wheezed out softly "Thank you Abner for bringing me coffee. I really needed it that night. That was a tough mission to plan. It was a bad location. Maybe if we had another set of eyes on the mission things would have gone differently and Yankee would still be alive."

Yawls stepped backwards as if he had been dealt a staggering blow.

No one, but no one ever said something like that to him. Sam thanked him for the coffee.

Sam saw some of the hatred dim in Yawls' eyes. But only for a second. Oh damn. He braced himself for pain as the wild look came back in full force.

Yawls' mind flip flopped but Melpomene's call from upstairs to get moving set his mind back to his task. He reached down and hauled Sam to his feet.

Sam stumbled as his legs wanted to give out. But he managed to stay upright.

"Move. Up the stairs. You do what I say and Sadie stays safe" Yawls stated.

Hearing a new voice upstairs Sam wondered for a moment if there were more than two. Yawls had only said my associate. Was someone still stalking Sadie and Jules? Were they truly safe?

Clutching the bunny in one hand Sam gripped the rail with the other. It was awkward because his hands were bound. He managed to make it half way before a coughing fit overtook him. Sam felt his legs wanting to buckle but dug deep and made it up the rest of the stairs.

At the top of the stairs he was exhausted. Running was out of the question. He had to get smart. Sam had to find an opportunity to get help because he was not getting away from here under his own power.

.

* * *

 _ **AN:** Yippee, it rained and I got out of doing something I didn't really want to do. So I got to finish the chapter before I expected. Happy reading. _


	13. Path to General, Leaders, Opportunity &

**Path to General, Leaders, Opportunity & Believe Me**

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Seven**_ _ **Hours Missing – Helicopter Enroute to La Dore**_

William adjusted his vest. It had been a very long time since he was in the field. It brought back a slew of the memories; some good and some bad. He pushed those thoughts aside and looked at Mike.

"You bring my rifle?" William asked.

Mike looked up from the map he, Jeff and Mason were studying and gave the General a half-grin "Most definitely Sir." Then he turned his attention back to Jeff as they reviewed the area around La Dore.

William nodded and looked at the men around him. All good men. He trusted Mike and his unit with his life but he was glad that Mason was on board. In some ways it would have been better to bring Mason's unit and allow Mike to guard Jules and Sadie. Mason's unit had more active field experience. Mark and Jeff had not been in the field in a very long time. Although, Jeff did train the Special Forces soldiers.

He thought it would be a good thing when Blaze and Ed's units arrived. Especially, Ed's team because this was in country and it was always tricky when the military got involved in what most considered domestic issues. He could justify his involvement because it was unknown what the true reason was that Samuel was taken.

Samuel's high security clearance and the wealth of information he possessed could present a national security risk. William knew that if it was any other soldier or former soldier with the same clearance taken he would be doing the same thing. However, some might look at this as him abusing his power to find his own son.

Some would think he was using military resources when he should not. He ran into that when he tried to get the satellites repositioned. William was glad that Mr. and Mrs. Yawls assisted them in finding a location because moving the satellites was unlikely to happen in enough time. The man in charge of them was somewhat of a rival of his and was making it very difficult.

Getting to be a General at rocket speed was bound to ruffle feathers of men much older than him at the time. He was not the youngest man to become a General, that honor remained with Robert William Moncel. Robert made Brigadier General at age twenty-seven. William was a close second though making the rank of Brigadier General at thirty-four.

It was quite simply a combination of things that landed him the position. He was qualified, there was no doubt. He had been trained from the time he was five by his father Arthur.

He was home schooled by the best private tutors, fast tracked through the Royal Canadian Military College by testing out of nearly half of the course load thanks to the preparation and training he had received from his father and tutors. William started as Second Lieutenant when he was only twenty right after graduating from the RCMC.

After that his father guided his career and William was given prime assignments. Not ones he always cared for but they set the path of his career early on. By twenty-four he was a Lieutenant in Special Forces and leading a unit. Within two years he had been promoted to Captain. Those four years is when he solidified his command skills and forged lifelong friendships with Jasper Parker, Tom Sutton, Anthony Cardillo, George Washington and Dominique Savoy.

When he was twenty-eight, he met Yvonne at a gala ball in celebration of his promotion to Major. By thirty he was promoted to Colonel, skipping Lieutenant Colonel altogether. That was not a fun way to be promoted.

Samuel was one at the time. He had missed most of his first year being in the field. William got the promotion due to death of Colonel Grasett and Lieutenant Colonel Elkins when their convoy was attacked. William's unit was providing escort for them and he did all in his power to try and save the Colonel and Lieutenant Colonel.

The injuries he received in doing so laid him up for several months. Jasper said he should have died from them. What Jasper failed to recognize was that there was no way in hell he would allow himself to die and leave Yvonne a widow and be unable to raise his son. It still hurt to this day that he was unable to save Grasett and Elkins, they were good men.

With the promotion to Colonel, William realized that his path had already been determined. His father, Brigadier General Arthur Braddock, was good friends with the General of Special Forces, General John Craymuier. After months of recovery, which William enjoyed spending time with Yvonne and Samuel, he took over the duties of Colonel Grasett.

That set the stage for his promotion to Brigadier General at age thirty-four. From then on he knew that General Craymuier had identified him to be his successor and fast tracked his promotions. General Craymuier once told him that he saw qualities in him that he knew would serve the country and the men of Special Forces well. William always tried to live up to that vote of confidence.

It was interesting to William that as he took on more and more of the daily operations of running the Special Forces the men began to simply refer to him as General. they tended to ignore the Brigadier part of the title. Samuel was five, Sara was three and Yvonne was pregnant with Natalie when he was promoted to Brigadier General. His kids only ever knew him as a General.

William cringed inwardly at the timing of that. Everything in his life had been planned out without consulting him. But he realized it was what he wanted too. It was the same time he began to train Samuel in the same way his father Arthur had trained him. Back then William had visions of handing off the Special Forces to Samuel. He thought that would be very cool.

So he began grooming Samuel. But that was not to be. Samuel's path was so different from his. Maybe if Sara had not died or if Plouffe did not have a sick vendetta against him and had not used Samuel so horribly things might be different. But those things did happen.

He regretted the way he handled Samuel back then. He wished to fervently that he could change the past. But he couldn't. Their reconciliation had been painful but oh so worth it. He finally got it right with Samuel and he truly enjoyed the time they spent together now.

William glanced at Mike and his walk down memory lane continued as he thought that he had done something else right. Mike was a changed man. William knew he had a hand in that.

When he was thirty-seven General Craymuier tagged him to lead a black ops mission off the books for his good friend Baron Wildingham. His twenty-one year old son Michael was missing and needed to be found. William's unit located Mike and when he found him in that dark alley, naked, frightened and strung out William's heart went out to the young man.

He still recalled the look on Mike's face when he stripped down and gave Mike his boxers and his t-shirt before the other men in his unit joined them. It was a look of complete gratitude. The kid was an absolute mess. It took time but he helped Mike get clean and find a path that helped him recover his sense of worth and value.

Galloway worked so hard to become the man he was today. When he graduated at the top of his class from both Basic and Special Forces training William ensured Mike was placed with the best unit. Yankee and Shy helped train Mike. They did a damned good job.

When William turned forty, General Craymuier retired and William was promoted to General. Two years later he tagged Mike to be the head of his security detail. Mike had refused to change positions in all these years. William truly did trust Mike with his life.

Mark was watching the myriad of barely perceptible emotions cross William's face. He wondered what his brother was thinking and asked "Will are you okay?"

William shook himself from reminiscing and answered "Yes. I was just thinking of the past." He turned his eyes to Mike and asked "Do we have a plan yet?"

Mason spoke up "We have no information on the location. So Mike, Jack, Craig and I will recon the area first. Drake will take up a sniper position on the south side with Jeff as his spotter. Sir if you could set up in a sniper position on the north side that would be good. Colonel Braddock can be your spotter."

The General nodded liking that Mason's and Mike's plan kept Drake out of direct confrontation in case Samuel needed him. They had no idea if or how Tocci and Yawls were armed. It would not be a good thing for Drake to be in the line of fire.

Additionally keeping Jeff, Mark and himself at a distance too was smart for a number of reasons. They were the ones most likely to be emotionally affected and that was never good in an op. But he also gave them important jobs made it easier to stomach not being able to go in with them.

William nodded and said "Good plan."

Mason grinned. He knew the General understood why he had positioned them the way he had. Drake had to remain in the background until he was needed. Jeff, the Colonel and the General were all light on field duty for many years. It was for their safety mostly. But he also needed snipers in place in case things went south.

All the men listened as Mason and Mike laid out all the details of the approach and recon plan. Then they all discussed different scenarios and how they were going to handle them should they arise.

William leaned back and thought, good men, every last one of them.

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Seven**_ _ **Hours Missing – SRU SUVs Enroute to La Dore**_

Spike looked at Leah as she drove. She had taken over from Jude when they headed out of La Tugue. She had an intense look of concentration on her face. It was needed seeing that they were doing near eighty miles per hour in order to keep up with Ed.

Ed would go faster Spike knew but that would be unsafe. First and foremost they needed to get there. They couldn't do that if they had an accident.

Spike asked "Leah you doing okay?"

Leah did not bother to glance at Spike. Her eyes were glued on the road. But she answered "Yeah. I just wish we were not two and a half hours away. I'm worried something will happen before we get there."

Spike inclined his head as he looked at his laptop where he had plotted their course and was tracking their progress as he responded "At the rate were are going it will only take us an hour and a half."

Leah smiled "Then we should get their when the General arrives."

Ed responded over the headset "Before, if I have my way."

Blaze commented "You haven't seen Zach push a helo before. My money is on the General getting there before us. Zach has skills. That kid can fly damned near anything and squeeze every ounce out of whatever he is flying."

Spike remarked "I know he can fly in a blizzard. The fact that he was able to land that helo and get the team close to Sam, Scott and me when we took that ski trip from hell still amazes me."

Ed chuckled "You should've seen the Boss on that flight. His face was nearly as white as the snow. He still hates to fly."

Winds smiled and said "But he did it when his guys were in trouble. A mark of a good leader."

Blaze sat back and images of Blondie filled his head. Talk of not liking to fly brought the image of Blondie talking to Matt. He said "Winds remember how Blondie helped Matt every time our unit had to fly."

Winds nodded "Yeah. Those two were always there for one another. Matt was not scared of much but he truly hated to fly. After that plane crash Blondie had his work cut out for him the next time the unit had to fly."

"He got Matt through it though. Blondie showed leadership qualities even back then" Blaze said.

Spike stated "Speaking of leadership, how are we planning on approaching the house. I have not been about to locate any blue prints."

The team and the unit began to discuss their strategy. It was determined that Jude would take up a sniper position to the east with Wordy as his spotter. Russ would take the sniper position to the west with their newest unit member Corporal Derek Savage as his spotter. That would leave Blaze, Winds, Daniel, Cameo, Ed, Spike, Leah and Sean to recon the building.

They decided they would pair up one SRU and one JTF2 to each team; Blaze and Spike, Ed and Daniel, Winds and Leah, and Cameo and Sean. Each team would approach from a different direction. Their plan was to stop far enough away as to not give away their arrival. They would circle around and approach from the woods.

After deciding on a strategy everyone got lost in their own internal thoughts as they continued to the drive to La Dore each hoping they got there in time and that Sam was not injured or worse.

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Seven**_ _ **Hours Missing – Outside General Store – La Dore**_

Sam sat in the back seat of the small car with Yawls next to him. The knife was hidden under a coat slung over Yawls' arm and the tip was pressed in his right side. Sam's hands were in his lap, bound and covered by a blanket.

His mind was working as quickly as he could. He had seen the map on the kitchen table. An area was circled. He knew that ridge. It was the first one he had ever climbed when he went camping in Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan with his uncle, cousins and father when he was six.

He and Jules had had climbed that ridge when they took a belated honeymoon to Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan after they knew the Boss was going to live. Ed, Spike and Wordy had all pushed them to take that honeymoon. Neither had felt right about leaving at the time.

But in the long run it was the right thing to do. Life did have to go on. They city was healing from that day and it was important to get back to life and not dwell on that terrible day. They had enjoyed their time on the honeymoon.

The log bridge was the best. They found it but this time they both ended up in the stream. He had checked for quicksand before they crossed the log. Luckily there was none. Sam smiled as he thought of Jules on that log. Such a spark of life in her eyes that day.

Yawls watched Sam closely and asked "What are you smiling about. You're gonna be dead soon."

Sam turned to Yawls and said "Just remembering my honeymoon. Can't object to me trying to recall a pleasant memory before I die. There is no way I can get away from you. You've planned everything so well."

He coughed and winced in pain. But then he continued "I see you knew that she needed boots. Hiking in high heels in that terrain is impossible. I suppose you planned everything you need."

Sam glanced at the heavy gray clouds in the sky and said "Like rain gear. It gets rather cold quickly out there without the proper outerwear."

Yawls looked at the sky and thought damn that storm is rolling in faster than he thought. He said "Get out. I need to get rain gear. Melpomene will be pissed and complaining if she gets wet."

Damn that worked Sam thought. He lifted his hands a bit "People will look at me kind of funny with my hands bound. You can see I'm in no shape to do anything. You hold all the cards. Why don't you cut them? I won't run."

Yawls laughed "I'm not that stupid. No you stay bound." He pulled the blanket off of Sam's lap and draped it over Sam's shoulders and then secured it in front. Then he said "Keep your hands hidden and if you so much as even think of doing anything to alert anyone I will kill you here and now and then kill Jules and Sadie too."

Sam nodded. Yawls got out of the car and came around to the other side and opened the door. Sam carefully got out of the car.

As he slowly walked to the store with the knife pressed into his side, Sam thought that even though his hands were bound and covered he now at least had a chance of someone seeing him. If he could say something to someone then he might be able to alert them.

The more Sam thought about it, Sam realized it was unlikely that there were more people involved other than Yawls and the woman he called Melpomene. It was a perfect name for her; the goddess of tragedy. The way she spoke to Abner was terrible. Sam could see that she was the one pulling the strings.

Whatever Plouffe had done to Yawls it had affected his mind. Yawls moved in and out of lucidity at a surprising speed in the last half hour as they prepared to leave the house. On the way to the store she yelled at Yawls and berated him for using his credit card and for answering a call from his mom. Melpomene was clearly a man-eater.

Both those things though gave Sam hope. If there were only two, then Jules and Sadie were safe and threats against them were empty threats. And surely Spike and the team would have tracked the credit card uses. The call from his mom was interesting. Sam hoped it was the team trying to locate him using Yawls' parents. He couldn't be sure but he hoped.

All Sam needed to do now was conserve his strength, try and get noticed so someone could alert whoever was coming to rescue him. And he needed to continue to befriend Yawls. He was the weak link. Yawls was definitely unstable and talking to him was risky. Yawls' reactions were unpredictable. But Sam had to try something to assist his rescuers.

The woman wanted him dead for some reason. Sam had never met her. But for some reason she despised him. She had not said a single word to him only glared at him with hatred and reminded Yawls that he was his enemy.

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Seven**_ _ **Hours Missing – Inside General Store – La Dore**_

Sam felt miserable. As soon as he entered the store he started hacking. He could not stop it. A few people turned to look but then quickly went back to shopping without giving him much notice. Damn.

Yawls pushed Sam to the outer wear department. And he said "You better shut off that coughing. You are drawing attention to yourself."

"I'm trying" Sam wheezed out. Then he added "Have problems with my lungs ever since Plouffe had Corporal Merrill shoot me in the chest. Damn near died. Actually he was trying to hurt my father by killing me. Then he planned on killing my father after he suffered for a while."

Yawls stopped Sam and turned him so he could see his face "You're lying."

Sam saw a bit of the madness ebb out of Yawls eyes "Sadly, no I'm not. Like I said, I was just a pawn. The major used me."

He dissolved into a hacking fit. Sam bent slightly as his chest constricted in pain. After a bit the coughing subsided and he hissed in pain as he stood upright again.

Yawls simply stared at Sam. Plouffe had someone shoot him? But it wasn't because he hated him. Plouffe hated the General. Was Sam really innocent like him?

No. No he wasn't. He was the enemy of his enemy therefore his enemy. Once he killed Sam he would be free. He would be a man again. The taint of what Plouffe did to him would die when Sam died.

"Get moving" Yawls stated harshly.

Sam saw that flip flop in Yawls' eyes. Maybe if he kept at it on the way to the ridge he could have some effect.

They got to the outerwear department and Sam saw a chair. He was exhausted from that short walk. He said "Why don't I sit down there while you find the right gear?"

Yawls saw the chair and nodded "Don't move from there or else."

Sitting down slowly Sam wanted to sigh with the small relief it gave his body. He said "Not going anywhere. You are in charge of the mission."

Sam wasn't sure why he added the last but he saw the shift in Yawls' eyes again. Less anger and something else he could not pinpoint. At least it didn't result in a punch or worse. Sam closed his eyes a moment as he tried to control his pain and his breathing.

It was getting more and more difficult to get enough air in. He concentrated on sniper breathing and images of Sadie and Jules. He wasn't sure how long he was sitting there when he felt a little tap on his arm.

Sam opened his eyes and found a little girl around seven staring at him with big hazel eyes. She was holding a sketch pad and colored pencils.

The little girl asked "Qu'est-il arrivé à votre visage? Il ressemble à un grand owie. Mon papa prend soin de owies."  
(What happened to your face? It looks like a big owie. My daddy takes care of owies.)

Sam said "Oui, il est un owie. Mon nom est Sam Braddock. Pouvez-vous dire à votre papa mon nom?"  
(Yeah it is an owie. My name is Sam Braddock. Can you tell your daddy my name?"

"Pourquoi?" the girl asked.  
(Why?)

Sam glanced over to see Yawls and Melpomene talking some distance away. Actually she was yelling at him. This just might be his only opportunity.

So Sam quickly responded "Je ai besoin d'aide. Certaines personnes sont à la recherche pour moi. Ils ont besoin de savoir où je vais. Dites à votre papa qu'il est important qu'il leur dire que je vais à la crête où je suis tombé malade quand j'avais six. Peux-tu faire ça?"  
(I need some help. Some people are looking for me. They need to know where I'm going. Tell your daddy that it is important he tell them I'm going to the ridge where I got sick when I was six. Can you do that?)

The little girl nodded then said "Vous voulez voir les licornes je dessinais?"  
(You want to see the unicorns I drew?")

Sam nodded and the girl opened her sketch pad. He looked at beautifully drawn unicorns. This little girl had a real talent.

Seeing Yawls heading back he said "Vous devez aller maintenant petit. Si vous pouvez, dessine-moi et de montrer aux gens qui viennent me chercher."  
(You need to go now little one. If you can, draw me and show it to the people that come looking for me.)

The little girl closed her sketch pad and skipped off. She thought the man looked sad. She needed to go tell her daddy what he said. Her eyes caught the art section and her mind immediately went back to what she was here to get. She wanted to get watercolors.

Yawls stopped and asked "What did you just say to that little girl?"

Sam wheezed out "She showed me her unicorn drawings. I told her they were nice but to run along and leave me alone."

Yawls stared at him a moment. He pulled Sam up and said "That better be all you said."

Wincing from the pain Sam clenched his jaw to stop from crying out. A small moan escaped when Yawls pushed him forward and towards the door.

He had done what he could without getting killed right here and now and without jeopardizing anyone else. Sam hoped the little girl would tell her dad and the message would get through.

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Seven**_ _ **Hours Missing – Outside General Store – La Dore**_

Sam was pushed into the backseat again. He was glad the blanket was still wrapped around his shoulder. He was freezing and he had started shaking. The shaking caused constant pain as his chest moved.

He and Yawls sat in the car for another ten minutes before Melpomene showed up.

Melpomene opened the car door and tossed the bags onto the passenger seat then got in and closed the door. She turned to the backseat and said in a sneer "Yawls you are damned lucky no one saw him. That was a stupid thing to do bringing him in there. You should have just called me and told me to get a raincoat."

Yawls asked "Did you get me one?"

She sighed "Yes, yes I did."

Melpomene turned on the car and pulled out. She looked in the rearview mirror and sneered at Sam "But I didn't bother with one for Sam. He's gonna be dead soon and dead men don't need raincoats."

As they drove out of the town, the rain started coming down lightly.

Sam thought as they drove please let someone be coming soon. He didn't know how long he would be able to hike in weather like this in his current condition. A racking coughing fit overtook him. When he was done he leaned back gingerly and closed his eyes completely exhausted and so tired of feeling pain as his body shivered.

He sent up a silent plea, "Mattie, help me. I need to be here for Sadie. Help me Matt."

Sam felt a sense of warmth envelop his body and the shivering lessened a little bit.

"Thanks Matt" Sam whispered.

 _Matt wrapped Sam in his wings and channeled energy to try and warm Sam up as he said "No thanks are necessary. I'm here brother. Rest for now. Help is coming. Just keep doing what you are doing."_

Yawls looked skewed at Sam wondering who the hell Matt was and why Sam was thanking him. Damn was Sam losing his mind?

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Seven and a Half**_ _ **Hours Missing – Inside General Store – La Dore**_

Louise was looking at the art supplies and trying to find the biggest set of watercolors. She was in seventh heaven in the art section of the store. She could spend her whole day here and be happy.

She was good and did all her chores this week and didn't tell any stories about her big brother in the last week. Daddy said if she stopped telling outlandish stories he would get her the watercolors. So she took her time to find the best set.

A kind male voice said "Louise, le miel, je savais exactement où vous trouver."  
(Louise, honey I knew right where to find you.)

Louise looked up and said "Papa, je trouve le jeu que je veux. Je suis bonne cette semaine à droite? Puis-je l'avoir?"  
(Daddy, I found the set I want. I've been good this week right? Can I get it?)

Dr. Mathieu Chasseur looked at the set and smiled. His daughter loved art and had a natural talent. She also had a very vivid imagination that drove him nuts sometimes. She told the most ridiculous stories and insisted they were true.

The things her big brother did in those stories were beyond belief. Mathieu knew it was how she coped with her big brother's death. But it was going on two years now. Her big brother had drowned in the river when they were canoeing.

Mathieu was quickly swept away from his kids by the current. He tried to get to them but he could not. Mathieu made it to the bank of the river and ran along the river looking for a place to get to them.

His son managed to get the canoe righted and he saved Louise by tossing her in. But then they were swept into the rapids. His son tried to get back into the canoe but he kept hitting rocks. When his son's head struck a rock, he was knocked unconscious and drowned. His son's body was swept away as Louise screamed and cried for him.

It was hard on all three of them. His wife cried non-stop for weeks. Hell he cried too. But it was hardest on Louise because she witnessed his death.

His son was a good young man. He had just enlisted in the Navy and that was the last trip they took as a family. When his son's body was finally found a day later it was so bruised and battered they decided to have a closed casket service.

Louise had nightmares for weeks but then began telling stories about her big brother as if he was still alive. Mathieu was certain it was because she had never viewed her big brother's body. They had wanted to shield her from that. But in hindsight, that decision might have been wrong.

She had built a fantasy world to cope with his death the psychologist said. At first the stories seemed harmless. But it had been two years now. Louise was getting too old to live in that fantasy land where she insisted her big brother was still alive. The psychologist said they need to help Louise see the difference between real and imaginary.

So Mathieu had been laying down the law about telling stories and trying to get her to admit they were just stories from her imagination. Missing her big brother and making up stories was alright and he loved that she had an imagination. But the part where she insisted they were true had to stop.

She had been good this week and hadn't told any stories. It would be good to reward that behavior to reinforce it. So Mathieu said "Yes honey you can get those."

Louise squealed and danced in a little circle. As she headed to the register with her daddy she walked past the chair that man was sitting in and she remembered what he asked her to do. She tugged on her daddy's sleeve to stop him.

She said "Papa Sam était là. Sam avait de grands owies sur son visage. Il avait l'air drôle quand il a parlé, tout sifflante comme il était difficile de respirer. Sam a dit que certaines personnes étaient à la recherche pour lui. Il a dit de vous dire qu'il allait à la crête il est allé quand il avait six ans de sorte que vous pourriez leur dire et ils pourraient le trouver."  
(Daddy Sam was here. Sam had big owies on his face. He sounded funny when he talked, all wheezy like it was hard to breath. Sam said that some people were looking for him. He said to tell you that he was going to the ridge he went when he was six so you could tell them and they could find him.)

Dr. Chasseur sighed, "Louise pas d'histoires s'il vous plaît."  
(Louise no stories please.)

Louise looked at her daddy "Il est pas un papa histoire. C'est vrai."  
(It's not a story daddy. It's true.)

Mathieu closed his eyes a moment and counted to ten. Then he opened them. Louise's eyes were wide and pleading.

But he said "Louise Yvonne Chasseur vous savez que votre grand frère Sam est plus là. Vous devez arrêter d'inventer des histoires bizarres sur lui comme s'il était encore en vie."  
(Louise Yvonne Chasseur you know that your big brother Sam is no longer here. You need to stop making up outlandish stories about him as if he was still alive.)

"Mais papa, il est réel. Sam était là. Il était assis là, dans ce fauteuil. Il avait de grands owies sur son visage. Sam avait l'air triste. Je dis la vérité" Louise cried as she clutched onto the watercolors.  
(But daddy it is real. Sam was here. He was sitting right there in that chair. He had big owies on his face. Sam looked sad. I'm telling the truth)

Dr. Chasseur reached out, not wanting to do this but feeling he had too. He took the watercolors. Then he set them on the shelf.

Mathieu stated "Vous ne serez pas obtenir ces aujourd'hui. Je suis désolé mais vous avez besoin d'apprendre la différence entre réel et imaginaire. Il est très triste, mais Sam est mort. Il ne pouvait pas avoir été assis ici. Je sais qu'il est douloureux de perdre votre grand frère, mais vous devez accepter qu'il n'y est plus de miel."  
(You will not be getting these today. I'm sorry but you need to learn the difference between real and imaginary. It is very sad but Sam died. He could not have been sitting here. I know it is painful to lose your big brother but you need to accept that he is no longer here honey.)

Louise sat down cried as she said softly "Mais papa, il est réel. S'il vous plaît. Crois moi."  
(But Daddy it is real. Please. Believe me.)

Mathieu glanced at the watercolors on the shelf but then bent down and picked up his daughter. He hated that she was crying but he also needed her to leave the imaginary world she built.

Louise cried because her daddy didn't believe her. She wished she could remember the other name the man said. But when he said Sam her heart had jumped and she didn't hear him for a second. She offered to show him her unicorns because her brother Sam always liked to look at her drawings.

She said again "Papa il est pas une histoire. Son nom était Sam. Vraiment. Il est pas une histoire au sujet de mon Sammy. Il était réel. Je sais que le papa de différence. Je vais vous faire un dessin de lui et vous verrez."  
(Daddy it's not a story. His name was Sam. Really. It is not a story about my Sammy. He was real. I know the difference daddy. I'll draw you a picture of him and you will see.)

Feeling unsure what to do, he was a physician not a psychologist, Dr. Mathieu Chasseur finally said "Vous pouvez me dessiner une image quand on rentre à la maison du miel."  
(You can draw me a picture when we get home honey.)

.

* * *

 _ **AN:**_ _I had a little fun with the names of the doctor and his daughter. Mathieu is the French spelling of Matthew. Chasseur is French for Hunter. Get it, Mathew Hunter. *grins* Then the little girl, Louise was Matt's mother's name and Yvonne of course is Sam's mother's name. Oh and she had a brother named Samuel._

 _Drop me a review and let me know what you think so far. More action coming in next chapter._


	14. Tough Waiting, Hike Begins & Get Samuel

**Tough Waiting, Hike Begins & Get Samuel**

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Seven**_ _ **and a Half Hours Missing – SRU HQ – Briefing Room**_

Greg was all alone in the briefing room now because the teams on duty were on hot calls. That didn't bother him at the moment because they had a location for Sam. What did bother him was waiting.

Sitting here and waiting was tough. Not knowing if the teams would be in time to save Sam was tough.

The profile they had created on Yawls and Tocci indicated that the greatest threat to Sam's life was from Tocci. Further digging into Yawls mental health revealed that he was indeed what his parents claimed; a good man who had a mental breakdown.

Greg had spoken directly with Colonel Sutton. The Colonel indicated that Yawls was an adequate soldier but that there was always something off about him so he kept the soldier involved in minor things such as reviewing mission reports submitted by the units. And of course he sent him to get coffee quite often.

The Colonel said that Yawls never complained to him about getting coffee. He had been surprised when Yawls pulled the weapon and shot Plouffe. Greg had to suppress a laugh when the reserved Colonel Sutton said he wished to God that Yawls had better aim. That he would have given the man personal firearms training if he knew Yawls was going to shoot at Plouffe. If Plouffe would have died that day then half the shit that happened to Sam as a result of Plouffe's machinations would never have happened.

Sutton realized his outburst after that and returned to a more professional mode when he said he was unaware of interactions between Yawls and Plouffe outside of those that took place in his office. Then he recalled that there were a few times that Yawls was sent to a remote base to retrieve or deliver documents to Plouffe.

Greg spoke with the prior residential care attendants and they all said that for the most part Yawls was calm. One indicated that he was highly susceptible to manipulation. Once there was another resident that had anger issues and Yawls began to emulate him.

The caregiver said that Yawls began to rant about the Major and planning missions. In his agitated state, Yawls was obsessed with making hot coffee that he would throw on a drawing he made of the Major he despised and hung on his wall. After a few months of this more violent behavior she managed to get the other resident reassigned to a more appropriate location. Once the other resident was gone Yawls returned to his docile and withdrawn state.

Jules had followed up speaking with Tocci's coworkers and friends. She found that Tocci indeed had a taste for expensive things and was very concerned about her looks and was constantly talking about finding a man to pay for everything so she could quit working and live the life of ease. She also was described as someone that always needed to be in control.

One friend said she began distancing herself from Melpomene about four months ago when she began to get irritated at her boyfriend Joseph. She witnessed once when Joseph called her Mel instead of Melpomene and Melpomene made a huge scene and yelled at Joseph asking if she looked like a boy. That Mel was a man's name and that if he was dating someone named Mel that meant he was gay.

She said it was a disgusting scene to witness and she began to realize that Melpomene was not the type of person she wanted to be around. The friend said she felt bad for Joseph because he tried to calm her down but he just took her verbal abuse. She began to wonder if Melpomene was just using Joseph to get her nice things.

But the last straw was when in her rage over being called Mel, that Melpomene picked up a chair and threw it against a window, shattering it. The violence of that act had her distancing herself from Melpomene. She found excuses to avoid meeting with her. Jules told Greg she had thanked the woman for being so candid then hung up.

With that information he and Jules had decided that Tocci was the real threat. According to Jules, Melpomene seemed to fit the profile of a malignant narcissist. Jules explained that a person with that disorder exhibited regressive escape from frustration by distortion and denial of reality.

Jules knew that malignant narcissism as a syndrome was characterized by a narcissistic personality disorder, antisocial features, paranoid traits, and egosyntonic aggression. Other symptoms may include an absence of conscience, a psychological need for power, and a sense of importance.

It was a toss-up between Yawls' borderline personality disorder and Tocci's malignant narcissism as to who was the greater threat. They determined that neither boded well for Sam's continued well-being. But the fact that Yawls seemed to be easily manipulated, Jules and he had determined that of the two, Melpomene posed the greatest risk to Sam.

Greg had also placed a call to the local police in La Dore to inform them that two teams were enroute to La Dore, one by helicopter and one via vehicles. The local police assured Greg they would send an officer to meet both teams about a mile from the home and they would not go in closer. The police had also indicated where to land the helicopter and arranged to have three SUVs waiting for them to use.

After that, Greg had contacted both Ed and the General and informed him of the location to meet the local police.

So now all Greg could do was wait.

He heard a sound and looked up. Greg smiled as Winnie entered the room.

Winnie was carrying two coffees and set one down in front of the Sarge. As she took a seat she said "Figured you could use a cup and someone to wait with you."

Greg picked up the coffee and said "Much appreciated but shouldn't you be at the desk?"

"Peter came in to cover for me. It was really nice of him to do" Winnie said as she toyed with her cup. Then she asked "How was Jules doing the last time you talked to her? This has got to be so hard on her. I mean not being able to go and just waiting at the General's home."

"She is holding up. Jules has Sadie to think about right now. I'm sure that is helping a bit. But you are right, we know Jules. She would much rather be out there right now" Greg said.

Then he grinned and said "She told me she ordered Mason to go after the General gave him direct orders to stay and guard her. She confided she was surprised when the General simply accepted her override of his orders and allowed Mason to go."

Winnie smiled and chuckled "That's our Jules. I can't wait to see her as Team Leader of Team One. She deserves that position, she's earned."

Greg nodded "Yes she did. Jules forged a path in SRU and several women have followed her footsteps. Jules does the SRU proud. If anything happens to Sam it will be a great loss to SRU to see her go."

Winnie's expression darkened as she asked "You really think that if Sam doesn't make it that Jules will leave?"

"I don't think, I know. Jules shared with me a decision that she and Sam made. If either one dies the other will seriously consider leaving SRU. Jules indicated that Sadie's security would always come before Jules' desires. Jules plans to leave SRU if Sam ever dies" Greg shared.

"Wow. It would be a double loss. I hope they get to Sam in time. We are just now beginning to feel normal around here. I can't imagine how Spike would react if both Jules and Sam were gone from SRU" Winnie remarked.

Greg laid a hand on Winnie's in comfort as he said "They will get to Sam in time. Have faith. Sam is resourceful. I'm sure he is doing everything in his power to survive."

Winnie nodded and put her other hand on top of Greg's in reciprocal comfort "Yes you are right. He is Samtastic after all. He and Spike survived at the hands of that serial killer that abducted them from the fishery and that ski trip and so many other things."

"That's the spirit Winnie" Greg said and then wanting to get Winnie's mind off waiting he asked with a knowing grin "So have you and Spike set a date yet?"

Surprise lit Winnie's eyes "How did you know Spike asked me to marry him?"

Greg chuckled "I am a good profiler" He glanced down at her left hand and said "You know there is a tell-tale sign that you had a ring on that left hand. Slight but it is there. Why are you waiting to tell?"

Winnie smiled "The ring needed to be sized. It was a bit too small. I wore it for the three days I was off duty but it was too tight. We are waiting until the ring comes back to tell everyone."

"Let me be the very first to congratulate you. Spike is a very lucky man. Winnie Camden you are a beautiful, strong woman and I wish you all the love and happiness in the world" Greg said then he hugged Winnie.

A bright smile beamed on Winnie's face as she responded "Thanks. I'm so glad I dropped my rule. Spike is the perfect guy. I'm the lucky one."

The two of them then settled back in the chairs and sipped their coffee as they waited together for word on Sam.

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Eight**_ _ **Hours Missing – Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan**_

Melpomene changed quickly into her boots. The town's shop did not have much of a selection and she was ticked off that the boots she found did not match her outfit. The raincoat though was beautiful. She had picked out the most expensive one. It was toasty warm and had a hood to keep her hair dry.

But she was also miffed that her style was ruined by the humidity. The beautiful straight style was now back to unmanageable curls and a bit frizzy. She took a moment to redo her make up as Yawls and Sam were taking a leak in the forest.

She shuddered at the idea that she might have to go in the forest. No bathroom. She had planned ahead though and brought several travel sized packets of tissues because she refused to use leaves. Gross and dirty she thought.

When she was done with her makeup she took a drink of the hot coffee she had bought and filled a thermos with. She would not share with Yawls that she had hot coffee. He would just waste it throwing it on Sam. Melpomene needed the warm drink if she was going to hike in this god forsaken forest.

She had liked her grandmother's vacation home because it had all the creature comforts. But she loathed all outdoor activities. Why anyone would want to rough it Melpomene could not fathom.

Seeing Yawls push Sam from the edge of the forest back towards the car Melpomene finally got out. She pulled her warm jacket close around her as she adjusted the hood over her hair pulling the ties tight.

Sam stumbled as he walked to the car again. He felt utterly miserable. His body was racked with deep wrenching coughs that seared his chest and made his knees nearly buckle. He was now soaked through by the rain and his hair was plastered to his head and rain dripped in his eyes.

Part of Sam wished the blanket was off of him because the extra weight of the soaked material was like carrying a forty pound pack. But it did offer him a small layer of protection from the weather. He was glad it was wool and not cotton. If it were cotton he would discard it immediately because it would only make him colder. But wool had a wicking effect and as such kept him slightly warmer.

Not that he was warm by any conceivable measure. But he wished his body would make up its mind. He alternated between bone jarring tremors as he shook with cold and all too short flashes of heat. Sam knew he was in serious trouble as the fever had set in. Yawls and Melpomene might just get their wish that he died. The hike alone in this weather might just kill him.

Melpomene yelled "About damned time you were done. I don't want to have to be out in this weather any longer than I have to. How far is it to this ridge?"

Yawls stated "It is about an hour's hike."

"Lead the way then" Melpomene said as she jammed her hands in her pockets.

Pushing Sam forward Yawls set off in the direction of the ridge.

Sam knew that there were two ways to get to the ridge. One way would put you at the base of the ridge and the other way would take you to the top of the ridge. When he told the little girl, he had no idea which trail Yawls would take.

He needed to find a way to leave a trail of bread crumbs for whoever was coming for him. Tracking in the rain would be very difficult because the rain would wash away footprints.

Sam thought for several minutes on how he could leave a trail that would be distinctive enough for those rescuing him but not obvious enough that Yawls or the woman would pick up on.

His foot hit a slick rock and Sam slammed down on his knees. The jarring to his rib sent pain shooting through him. He gritted his teeth and groaned in pain unable to keep it from coming out.

Sam barely registered both Yawls and Melpomene yelling at him to get up. He was gasping for breath as his face received a stinging slap. Looking up, he saw the woman in front of him. Sounds penetrated again and he heard her loud and clear.

Melpomene slapped Sam across the face with all her might then she yelled "Get up. You better not slow us down. I hate being outside in the woods. I'm going to need an entire day at the spa to recover from this … this … this dirty place."

Yawls said "Why don't you just wait in the car Melpomene. I can take Sam to the ridge and take care of business."

Huffing, Melpomene's tone was snide as she said "I cannot trust you to do it right. I have to make sure Sam is dead."

Sam wheezed out "Why do you want me dead? I don't even know you." He refrained from ending the sentence with bitch but the glare in his eyes still said it.

That earned him another hard slap as she said "None of your damned business. Now get on your feet you worthless dog. You should not even be in SRU. That spot was for Joseph."

Melpomene clamped her mouth shut after she said more than she intended. Then she lashed out and kicked him in the thigh. She stormed away.

Sam's bound hands were rubbing his thigh where she kicked him. One more bruise and ache to add to his list. His eyes glanced down and he saw he was still clutching Sadie's bunny.

An idea formed in his head. That would work. Sam stuck a finger into the cut in the bunny and pulled out a very small amount of stuffing. He let the little piece fall as he was yanked to his feet by Yawls.

When he was standing Sam turned to Yawls and asked "Do you know why she wants me dead? Who is Joseph?"

There was a moment of lucidity in Abner's eyes as he said "Don't know who Joseph is but she does seem to hate you."

But then the madness and anger flared and Yawls said "Get moving."

He shoved Sam forward. In doing so the blanket slipped off. Yawls didn't notice and so it was left on the ground as they moved forward and Yawls started muttering "Enemy of my enemy is my enemy."

Sam felt the biting cold more now that he didn't have the blanket. He didn't call attention to it because it was a beacon to the direction he was being taken. It was more than the little pieces of fluff he was slowly working out of the bunny and dropping every twenty yards or so now.

After Yawls stopped muttering and Sam saw Melpomene was a ways ahead of them he tried again to connect "You want to know why Plouffe hated my dad?"

When there was no answer from Yawls one way or the other Sam continued "Plouffe hated my dad because Plouffe thought he was slighted. I was only eight and got to go with my dad to the gun range. I didn't see my dad often because he was so busy but my mom and sisters were sick so he took me with him that day. His long-range marksmen were training."

"For fun my dad let me join in a friendly competition. I won the competition. Most of the men probably let me win. I mean I was only eight and they were Special Forces snipers. But Plouffe took offense and my father never knew. For the next twenty years Plouffe tried to find ways to hurt him."

Sam stopped as raw coughing attacked him. When he caught his breath a bit he went on as it seemed Yawls was listening to him. "When I joined Special Forces, Major Plouffe found the best weapon to use to hurt my dad. Me. Plouffe made my life hell for six years. He sent taunting pictures to my dad every time he did something to me."

"He blackmailed one of the General's aides to cover things up. The Major ultimately hired him to kill me after I left Special Forces and joined SRU. Plouffe also used another soldier to cause problems for me and put me in harm's way when I was in JTF2."

"I never did find out what Plouffe had over him that him that made him do those things to me. But it could be that the soldier simply hated me. He never liked me when we were training for Special Forces even though I saved his life. He thought that I was somehow given special privileges. That was so far from the truth as to be laughable. I was expected to perform better because I was the General's son" Sam finished.

Sam was too out of breath to say more at the moment. He wished he could see Yawls' eyes but he was behind him. Sam pulled a bit more stuffing out of the bunny and then put his hands on a tree as he stopped walking. He worked it into the bark as he tried to take in a lungful of air.

Breathing deep was necessary but oh so painful. The moan followed by a hiss of pain came out and Sam didn't care at this point.

Yawls looked at Sam leaning on the tree. He had listened to everything Sam said. There was a war going on in his head. Did he believe Sam or was Sam lying like Melpomene said he was? Would killing Sam really make him a man like Melpomene said? Would it cure him?

Abner was so confused.

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Eight**_ _ **Hours Missing – One Mile From Vacation Home – La Dore**_

General Braddock paced slightly. Mason and Blaze had been in contact and determine both groups would arrive within five minutes of each other. They were the first to arrive and he really wanted to get moving. But Mason, Mike, Blaze and Ed all agreed it was better to go with a full force.

Mason's and Mike's plan had not accounted for Scott and Zach. It was determined that Zach would remain with the helo so it would be flight ready at a moment's notice. Mark stayed to help Zach and Scott replaced Mark as his spotter.

That was better in William's eyes because Mark tended to feel the ache in his back when it rained. Mark had injured his back years ago in the line of duty. William was protective of his younger brother and although he appreciated his moral support by coming, they had more than enough men to rescue Samuel without having Mark traipse through the woods and end up hurting.

William perked up with he saw three SRU SUVs barreling towards them. It was almost go time. He knew the group would take a minute to review the plans and make any last minute adjustments.

Then it would be time to go get Samuel.

.

* * *

 _ **AN:**_ _The next chapter is written and will be posted in a few moments too. I split them for easier reading because the chapter got too long. Please forgive typos, need to get to bed but wanted to post them, will fix tomorrow._


	15. Sam Was Here & Connecting and Choices

**Sam Was Here & Connecting and Choices **

* * *

_**Thirty-Eight**_ _ **Hours Missing – Vacation Home – La Dore**_

After a brief conference between, Ed, Blaze, Mason and Mike, the group sorted out who was where. Then they all checked their weapons and Spike handed out comm links to everyone so they were all on the same channel and in direct communication. They took the vehicles to within a half mile. Everyone piled out and headed to their positions double time.

William sighted his side of the building and checked all windows. He called out "No targets in view."

Ed didn't bother to correct the General to 'subjects'. His mind was in alignment with the military guys at the moment. From everything Greg had shared with them on Tocci and Yawls, Ed believed 'targets' were better descriptors. He briefly thought that Sam would be shocked to hear him thinking this.

All four sniper positions called in with the same results. No visibility to any subjects or Sam. The pairs moved forward silently and reconned the building. Winds and Leah checked the interior of the van and then covered the north side of the building. Ed and Daniel took point on the back door with Mason and Craig. Blaze and Spike took point on the front door with Mike and Jack. Cameo and Sean covered the south side windows.

Blaze counted down and at the same time they entered the front and the back of the house silently.

Spike, Blaze, Mike and Jack would take the front room and then head upstairs. Ed, Mason, Craig and Daniel took the back of the house and the basement. The four others remained outside just in case either Tocci or Yawls managed to make a run for it.

The pairs spread out clearing the various rooms. Ed and Daniel approached a door they presumed led to the basement. On three, Daniel pulled the door open and Ed headed down the stairs with his MP5 at the ready.

Ed reached the bottom of the stairs and saw that the room was empty. With frustration Ed called "Clear."

Then he strode forward when he saw chains. Ed swore loudly when he saw the spots of blood on the floor. It was clear Sam had been injured in some way and was bleeding at least some. To him it looked like Sam spit out the blood. That meant some pretty hard blows to the face. Dammit.

All the others reported clear and Ed then stated "Sam was here. I have blood and chains down here."

Blaze, Spike, Mason and the rest of the group that entered the home converged in the basement. They took in the scene. The bat, pipe, chains and blood bothered each of them. What bothered them most though was that Sam was not here.

Sam had been moved someplace else. They were too late to rescue him from here. Where Sam was now was anyone's guess. They were all extremely disheartened and frustrated.

Spike was looking at the spots of blood when his eyes landed on something white and fluffy. He squatted down and poked at it with the tip of his MP5. He looked up at Ed and said "This looks like stuffing, like something of from a toy."

From outside Leah offered "What if they sent the bunny here to taunt Sam with it?"

Images of Ben's duck entered Mason's head. Blondie had clutched onto that duck when he was beaten in those caves. It was the only way Blondie was recognized. God only knew how Blondie would react to seeing Sadie's bunny.

A wealth of emotion boiled up in him and Mason clenched his fist then slammed it into the post that had chained Blondie.

Pieces of wood went flying from the fairly rotten support post. There was a deafening crack and floor above groaned. Everyone raced for the stairs and barely made it out of the house just before a section of the house went crashing down into the basement. Ed was the last one out.

"Holy Shit!" Winds commented as the dust settled.

Mason looked sheepishly at his hand. His knuckles were a bit bruised and a little bloody.

Blaze patted Mason's back "Christ Mason, I knew those massive fists were deadly. But one punch bringing down a house? Never saw that coming."

Spike was about to make a smart-assed comment about renaming Mason to Wreck-It Ralph but he happened to glance at Ed. "Shit, Ed you're arm."

He raced over as everyone including Ed looked at Ed's arm.

Ed was surprised to find a large piece of wood embedded in it. He didn't feel a thing. Ed decided that it must be the adrenaline pumping through him.

Mike called out "Drake we have an injury. Double time it. Ed has one hell of a piece of wood in his arm."

The rest of the group and Drake converged very quickly.

Drake did an initial assessment then stated "We need to find the nearest clinic. Ed's arm should be x-rayed before removing the shard to minimize muscle and nerve damage." Then Drake began to secure the fragment so it would not move on the trip to the clinic and potentially cause more damage.

Leah raced for one of the SUVs not wanting Ed to walk a half a mile. Spike, Wordy and Drake waited with Ed for Leah to return while the rest of the group jogged back to the other SUVs.

After a quick conversation with the local officer to cordon off the home, the group headed back into the town. The fact that Sam was no longer here had them all down.

Enroute to the clinic the group made plans.

The General stated "While Ed is getting care the rest of us should canvas the area to see if we can find a clue as to where Tocci and Yawls have taken Samuel. We have the description of the car and people involved. Surely someone in this small town saw something."

Spike suggested "Cameo and I should work to see if there are any security cameras in town that might have captured the car or any of them."

"Good suggestion" William stated.

They decided to pair up again as before, mostly because they knew this was a French speaking town and even the local constable only had a smattering of English. Although Leah spoke French having grown up in Haiti, Ed, Wordy, Spike, Jude and Sean did not speak French so being teamed with a JTF2 soldier who did made the most sense.

However, Wordy and Drake went with Ed to the clinic. The General said the last time he was in La Dore the doctor at the clinic only spoke French so Drake would need to interpret for Ed.

As they arrived at the clinic the General stated "Scott and I will continue to cut through the red tape and get the satellite repositioned while the rest of you search for leads."

He got a mix of "Copy" and "Roger" from the assembled group.

With that the group split up into their pairs and headed in different directions while Ed, Wordy and Drake entered the small hospital in La Dore.

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Nine**_ _ **Hours Missing – Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan**_

Sitting on a rock with his back leaning on a tree Sam didn't think he could go any further. He was glad the woman was such a prissy, complaining, out of shape bitch. If she had been in shape the pace would have been unbearable. But she kept stopping and sitting down as she complained about absolutely everything, but mostly what this weather and the hike in the mud was doing to her complexion and how her feet ached.

It was good that it was taking much longer to get to the ridge. Sam knew that if they made it to the ridge without swaying Yawls that he was a dead man if rescuers had not located him. So the longer it took the better chance he had of making it out of this alive.

Sam took every opportunity to rest that he could. He also took every opportunity to feed small bits of information about how Plouffe had used him to hurt his dad. Sam thought he might be having an effect on Yawls. The knife was now usually down at Yawls side as they walked instead of in his back.

He closed his eyes as he stifled a coughing fit. He hadn't felt this bad hiking since the suicide mission that Plouffe had sent him on with Sergeant Parsons where Nicholls tried to kill him and then Parson left him for dead. He had been dehydrated and injured then too.

But he did not have this debilitating cough and broken rib. He did have a stress fracture of the navicular bone in his foot then. But he was the one setting the pace back then and he rested when he needed to. Now he had no choice but to try to keep going. Otherwise they might decide to just kill him here.

Sam watched Yawls take a drink of water. He was so thirsty. He had tried to get drips of rain water but it wasn't enough and in the last few minutes the rain had turned into a light mist. Sam licked his dry lips and asked politely with a wheezy voice "Can I have a drink Abner?"

Yawls looked at Sam with lucid eyes and handed him the water bottle. Sam gripped the water bottle and took a sip. It was what he desperately needed. He took four more sips before the bottle was wrenched from his hands.

Melpomene screeched at Yawls as she grabbed the water bottle "We need this. Do not be giving anything to your enemy. He deserves nothing."

Then she shoved the water bottle into Yawls hand and went back to Sam and slapped his face again. One of her nails popped off and she went wild.

Melpomene grabbed at Sam's shirt and yanked very hard as she slapped Sam's face numerous times. She screamed, "Look what you did. I just got these nails done this morning. You ruined them like you ruined Joseph getting into SRU. That was his spot not yours."

She turned and grabbed the knife from Yawls and started cutting Sam's shirt into shreds. Melpomene was in such a rage she didn't care that she was nicking Sam as she ruined his shirt.

Sam tried to defend himself but in his weakened state the best he could do was to keep the blade away from his body and reduce the possibility of being stabbed. She sliced again and it was too close and Sam felt the cut down his chest.

He could not risk anything deeper so he wrenched himself up and stepped to the side. His motion took her by surprise and her grip on his shirt was strong as she yanked him back to her intending on stabbing him. How dare he fight back?

The result was that Sam's shirt was ripped in two. Melpomene in her anger lashed out with the knife again and Sam twisted away just in time to prevent a slice to his skin but the back of his shirt was not so lucky. The knife slit the back of his shirt from collar to waist.

Sam managed to step away from her as she held onto a piece of his shirt. He was breathing fast and shallow trying not to go into another coughing fit. His shirt hung down around his waist completely tattered. Sam's entire torso was exposed.

The coughing could not be prevented and Sam fell to his knees as the force of the coughing and the pain it caused overwhelmed him.

When it subsided Sam tried desperately to get enough air into his lungs. He feared he was going to pass out as the black speckles started dancing in his eyes and his vision narrowed to a tunnel.

While Sam was trying to breathe, Yawls was staring wide eyed both at Melpomene's insane attack and the myriad of scars that littered Sam's chest and back.

Yawls had one lucid thought. What the hell did Plouffe do to Sam?

Melpomene stormed off a ways when the coughing started. She hated to be around sick people. It would suck if she got a cold from Sam. She sat on a rock and pulled out her compact and started to fix her face again. The rain had done a number on her make-up. She needed to fix it.

When she was done she looked at her nails. Dammit now she would have to go get them fixed again. She stood and yelled at Yawls "Get him up. We need to get moving. He is slowing us down. I want to get out of this damned forest quickly. I need to get my nails fixed for the second time today. I hope that La Dore has a nail salon."

Then she turned and started in the direction that Yawls had indicated earlier.

Yawls crouched down to Sam and lifted his chin firmly.

Sam saw eyes that were docile and kind.

Abner asked "What did Plouffe do to you?"

Sam wheezed out "A lot. Too much to list."

Abner pointed to the scars on Sam's chest "Did Plouffe do that?"

The pain of the memories showed in Sam's eyes and he spoke very softly "Not personally but he arranged it so someone else did it to me. I was tortured for three months. Most of the things they did to me I refuse to speak about."

"Let's just say some people are pure evil and derive pleasure by debasing and hurting others and laughing while you scream in pain. There are people that have no morality and are so depraved they have lost all humanity. Plouffe put me in the hands of such people."

"However, most of the visible scars are from the daily whippings. The large one is from the armor piercing bullet that nearly killed me when I attended the funeral of another SRU officer who was killed in the line of duty. He was an honorable man even though he was Plouffe's nephew."

"Major Plouffe sent two people to kill me that day. He sullied his own nephew's funeral with his sickness. My father threw himself in front of one bullet to save me. He was hit in the shoulder. The other bullet nearly succeeded in killing me and damaged my lungs."

Sam's lungs took that moment to send him spiraling into a very painful place as raw coughs racked his body for several minutes. He could barely breathe again and swayed on his knees as the blackness threatened to take him.

Yawls reached out and stabilized Sam as he got his breath back. Then Yawls helped Sam to rise as Melpomene yelled for him to get moving.

Sam said "Thank you. Can you tell me what Plouffe did to you?"

Abner's eyes teared up and he shook his head.

Sam reached out his hands. It hurt but he raised them up enough to pat Yawls' shoulder twice before he had to drop them down again. It was a gesture of comfort that Sam hoped was not lost on Yawls. He seemed to be staying fairly lucid.

He said in a soft breathless voice "It's okay Abner. Plouffe was one sick bastard. He hurt a lot of innocent people. I'm sorry for the pain he caused you. But it might help you to talk about it. I know. My best friend taught me that."

Sam shared "I was pretty messed up after those three months of torture. My friend said I needed to lance the wound and let the pus out. By keeping it bottled up inside it was like a festering infected wound that would eventually kill me. He was right. Once I talked about what happened to me I started to heal. I'm pretty good at listening if you want to talk about it. To lance your wound so you can begin to heal."

Melpomene turned and shouted "Get your ass moving Yawls. You have to kill your enemy. We need to get to the ridge."

Yawls looked at Sam and said "Get moving."

Sam sighed. He thought he made a connection. Apparently Melpomene had a strong hold over him.

As he started walking, Sam shivered violently. He stumbled and was surprised when a strong arm grabbed his arm and prevented him from falling. Sam said "Thanks."

They walked slowly following Melpomene. Both could hear her complaining loudly about all the mud as her boots became covered in mud. They walked in silence for the next ten minutes.

Sam was again surprised when Yawls broke the silence and said in a quiet, withdrawn voice "Plouffe used me and took my manhood away. I was innocent once. He tricked me into giving him information. He said he knew my skills were under used. I wanted to be a good soldier but I got Yankee killed."

Sam's head whipped to Yawls at that comment and his voice shook with combined cold and emotion "What information did you give Plouffe?"

Yawls' started to cry. Sam watched tears fall for several minutes as they slowly walked a fair distance behind Melpomene.

After a bit Yawls looked at Sam and finally said "I told him the location of the meeting. I'm good at reading maps. When I brought in the coffee I saw the maps of the meeting location. When Yankee died and there was the investigation I went to Plouffe. I was afraid I just committed treason."

Tears began to roll in earnest and he looked away unable to look Sam in the eyes then Abner said "I've never told a soul this. But he laughed at me. Plouffe then told me that I had to drop my pants or he would turn me in for treason."

Abner's voice shook with pain and anguish, "Plouffe raped me right then and there. He raped me often. He made me do all kinds of depraved things. He loved making me get on my knees like a dog and dumping burning hot coffee on me. He laughed when I screamed out in pain as he raped and burned me. He made me pass him information on missions. Plouffe made me destroy parts of mission reports or modify them too."

Yawls turned to Sam and said "Plouffe took my manhood away. I have to get it back. Melpomene says if I kill you I will be a real man. If I kill the enemy of my enemy I will be cured."

Sam sucked in a breath. Oh shit. What did he do with this type of information? He was way out of his league. Sam wished Jules or the Boss were here.

But Sam decided he would just speak from the heart "Abner, killing me will not cure you. I am so sorry that Plouffe abused you. Being raped does not make you less of a man."

"How would you know?" Yawls asked as anger started to ebb into his voice.

"I know. I was molested at eleven" Sam shared.

Yawls' irritation increased "That's different. You were just a boy and not big enough to fight back. You were not a man so your manhood could not be taken from you."

Sam stopped and closed his eyes. He needed to survive. He knew he had no chance of doing that without making a connection. Shit he did not want to do this but he had no other choice. He needed to save himself because Jules and Sadie needed him.

His voice was barely above a whisper, Sam opened his eyes and looked directly at Yawls as he shared "I've never told a soul about this. I tried to fool myself it never happened but it did and I had to accept it and deal with it. I chose never to share it with anyone not even my wife because it is very personal. But when I was held captive by the depraved bastards for three months, I was raped, several times."

"So I know the feelings that something like that brings. But I repeat, you are no less a man because of it. What makes a real man is the choices he makes in how he lives his life. Real men love, laugh and cry. They support and protect the people who they care about even when it means they have to make sacrifices. Real men try to do good in the world and make it a better place."

"Manhood is not something someone can take from you. It is all about the choices you make, not the things that are done to you."

"Abner you can choose. If you kill me you will only be throwing your life away. It will not make you a man or cure you" Sam said.

Yawls stared at Sam a long moment. Could it be that simple? Could he choose to be a real man without killing Sam?

Then Sam remembered Melpomene berating Yawls for taking a call from his mother and added "How would your mom feel if you chose to throw your life away?"

"She would be sad and she would cry" Abner answered.

.

* * *

 _ **AN:**_ _Hope you enjoy the two chapters back to back. It is late for me and I wanted to get this posted for all my readers so please forgive typos. I will fix any tomorrow._


	16. Lilly, Sophie Calls, Lizzy's Voicemail,

**Lilly, Sophie Calls, Lizzy's Voicemail, Language Barrier & Happy Memories**

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Nine**_ _ **Hours Missing – Wordsworth Home – Toronto**_

Nine year old Lilly, eight year old Holly and seven year old Allie all bounded into the house after school happily chatting.

Lilly called out "Mom we're home" as they all headed for the kitchen.

Holly opened the fridge and grabbed out juice boxes for each of them while Allie headed for the pantry to get them some cookies. Lilly looked around the room and was concerned when she did not see her mom.

"Mom?" Lilly shouted as she headed out of the kitchen.

When she didn't hear her mom respond Lilly raced up the stairs. Dad told her to keep an eye on Mom when he called to tell them he was going to have to be away for a few days. Dad didn't say why but she could see whatever the reason was it concerned her mom a lot.

As the oldest, she had been helping out a lot since Mom was pregnant. It had surprised her Mom and Dad to find out Mom was pregnant. Lilly laughed when she heard Mom telling Aunt Sophie that she thought she was just sick and Dad told her she was pregnant. Mom had sent Dad out to get one of those home pregnancy tests.

Her mom told Aunt Sophie that when the test showed positive she did not believe it and made her Dad go out at eleven pm to buy one of each brand of test the store carried. They all came back positive.

Dad was thrilled and Mom was concerned. Mom was older, thirty-four now and she was worried about all the things that came with having a baby later in life. Lilly was glad that Aunt Sophie and Aunt Jules were there for Mom. Both of them had babies when they were older than Mom. Aunt Jules was thirty-six when Sadie was born and Aunt Sophie was thirty-nine when Izzy was born.

Lilly wondered if she would be having a brother or a sister. Her parents decided to wait to find out when the baby was born. Lilly secretly hoped for a little brother. Dad would be happy to have a little boy. Ah heck, Dad would be happy to have another girl too. Dad was just like that. She had the best Dad in the whole wide world.

She knocked on her parent's door and called out "Mom we're home. Are you in there?"

Shelley was lying on the bed. She was feeling the contractions. The baby wasn't due for two or three weeks. But each of her other babies had come early. She softly said "Lilly come in."

Lilly opened the door "Mom, are you okay?"

Shel smiled and said "Would you call Aunt Sophie? I think the baby is coming."

Lilly's eyes shot wide open "But Dad is not here."

"I know that honey. He is doing something important. Please call Aunt Sophie for me" Shel said and then started panting through a contraction.

Racing from the room Lilly hollered "Holly, Allie, Mom is going to have the baby. Get the bags. I'm calling Aunt Sophie."

Holly and Allie raced from the kitchen, their afternoon snack completely forgotten, and raced to do as Lilly told them to do. It was exciting. Their little brother or sister was going to be born.

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Nine**_ _ **Hours Missing – Small Hospital – La Dore**_

Ed was sitting on the exam table with Wordy and Drake in the room with him. It was a good thing that Drake spoke French because the nurse spoke no English. But it was clear what was wrong with him. The nurse took one look at the wood sticking out of his arm and ushered him back into the exam room.

They were waiting on a doctor now. There were two doctors in this town. Drake told them that the nurse said the older doctor, Dr. Jean-Marc Fouché, was busy with another patient who sustained a deep laceration injury at the saw mill. The younger doctor, Dr. Mathieu Chasseur was currently at home but that she had called him and he was on his way in.

Wordy looked at Ed and said with humor "You know as painful as that must be at least it's not in your ass."

Ed chuckled "Yeah if it were, Sam and I might have matching scars."

Drake looked between the two of them and saw the humor shared between two old friends. He could see Wordy was trying to lighten the mood for Ed while they waited for the doctor to show up. But Drake just had to ask "Matching ass scars?"

Wordy grinned as he said "Yeah, Sam told us a funny story about himself when he was a teen. Got a shard of wood embedded in his ass and has the scar to prove it."

Ed sighed as the grin faded "I hope like hell Sam is not starting on a second round of the alphabet. Injuries for every letter in the damned alphabet is more than one man should have to endure. He was bleeding Wordy. We need to find him. My gut says Sam is in bad shape."

Wordy nodded and was about to respond when his phone rang. He looked at the caller id and said "Ed why is your wife calling me?"

"Damned if I know. Answer it and find out" Ed stated and wondered why too.

Hitting the accept call button, Wordy put the phone to his ear and said "Hi Sophie."

 _[Sophie paced in the hall of the labor and delivery department of the hospital as she said "Shel did not want me to call you. She does not want to distract you from finding Sam. But I think you need to know. So I'm calling. Shel is in labor. The doctor is with her now. The girls are with Clark at my home but Greg is on his way to pick them up. Winnie is on her way to the hospital. I wanted to let you know we have things covered until you can get here."]_

Wordy looked at Ed in disbelief as he responded to Sophie "The baby is not due for three weeks. How is Shel? The baby?"

 _[Her voice calm and reassuring Sophie said "Both are doing well Wordy. Remember, your girls all came early. After the doctor does his check of her I'll have Shel call you."]_

"Okay. Can you tell her I love her and I will be there just as soon as I can?" Wordy stated as he rubbed the back of his neck.

 _["I will do that. You be safe out there. We will take care of everything here. Shel is in good hands right now" Sophie assured Wordy once again.]_

As Wordy hung up Ed asked with concern "Are Shel and the baby okay?"

"Yeah, she went into labor. I was worried about that. Shel was very worried about Sam being abducted. Maybe the stress caused her to go into labor early" Wordy surmised.

Ed looked to Drake and said "Go find the General. We need to get Wordy home quickly."

Wordy shook his head "No I need to be here."

Ed stated firmly "No you need to be with Shel and your baby." He looked at Drake who was still sitting there and said "Go now."

Drake stood and rushed out of the room. As he went Drake thought that Ed would have made a damned good Sarge in JTF2. He had the command voice down to a T.

Turning back to Wordy when Drake left the room Ed's voice soften "Wordy, there are enough people to find Sam. You know Sam would want you to be there for the birth of your child."

"I can't leave yet Ed. I feel it. We are so close to finding him. Besides how would I get there quickly? Sophie, Winnie and the Boss are there for her right now" Wordy stated.

Ed moved his arm forgetting for a moment the shard of wood in it. He winced. Ed was feeling the pain now that the adrenaline had diminished in his system. Ed responded "The helo. Zach can fly you to Toronto."

Shaking his head, Wordy's voice was resolute "No. If Sam needs to be airlifted the helo needs to be here for him. I will not agree to that."

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Nine**_ _ **Hours Missing – Blain Home – Ottawa**_

Lizzy called out to eleven year old Ryan "Ryan I need you to come get Sammy."

Ryan popped into Sammy's room and saw his mom was on the phone. He went directly to Sammy who was in the crib and starting to cry. He picked him up and said "Hey Sammy, none of that."

He picked up Sammy stuff dinosaur and danced it around as Sammy stopped crying and said "Dino. Ryan play dino."

Ryan sat on the floor and set two year old Sammy on the floor and proceeded to bounce the dino up and down on the carpet making Sammy laugh. Ryan listened to his mom's side of the conversation.

Lizzy said "Hey Stewart sorry to bother you at work. But I have a favor to ask." She shifted in the rocking chair as she held onto her very pregnant belly.

 _[Stewart Adams grinned as he heard Lizzy's voice "It's no bother Lizzy. What do you need?"]_

"Well, I was expecting Don back by now but he was diverted for a rescue mission" Lizzy said and then sucked in a breath as she bent over as the strong contraction rippled through her abdomen.

Ryan was on his feet in an instant "Mom, is the baby coming?"

Lizzy nodded to Ryan and said to Stewart "I need a ride to the hospital. As you no doubt heard Ryan, the contractions have started. They are still really far apart but with Don not here I thought it would be best to head to the hospital now."

 _["Give me one moment to tell David I have to leave. He will cover for me. I'll be there in no time Lizzy" Stewart said as he made his way towards David.]_

"Thanks Stewie. I wouldn't have bothered you but Daphne is away at a conference, she took Ben with her because I was so close to my due date. Marsaili was going to take me if need be but Lachlann came down with the chicken pox" Lizzy shared.

 _[Stewart grinned. There were only two people in the world he allowed to call him Stewie. Lizzy was one and Sam Braddock was the other. It was because of both of them that he found his niche in physical therapy. His time spent rehabbing Sam had been a real challenge and he learned a lot about working with soldiers. The progress that Sam made astounded him to this day._

 _He thoroughly enjoyed working with soldiers. When he got back to Canada, he managed to get his boss David to expand their practice to work with veterans and serving soldiers. They were a unique breed and it was rewarding to be able to give back to those that served this country will dedication._

" _Is there anyone you want me to call?" Stewart asked as he stopped near David.]_

Lizzy calmly said "No I have that covered. I already called Cameo's wife, Joanna Parsons offered to watch the boys for us. She babysits Sammy sometimes so the boys know her. She just lives down the block. Joanna should be here any minute now."

 _[Okay. See ya in a bit. No having that baby before I get there" Stewart teased with his long-time friend and then hung up._

 _He was so glad to see that she remarried. Stewart really liked her husband Blaze. It was such a small world Stewart thought when Lizzy introduced him to her new husband Major Donald Blain. They definitely knew each other._

 _That meeting was memorable. Blaze and he had both just stared at each other and then blurted out "I know you." They spent that dinner filling in Lizzy on how they came to know each other. It was definitely a small world.]_

Lizzy looked at her phone and debated whether to call Don or not. She decided that he needed to know. He would want to know even if he could not come.

She hated that he would feel conflicted. Lizzy knew without a doubt that Don felt like Blondie was like a son to him. Right now Sam needed Don more than she and little Nathan did. She knew he would be here when he could.

But before calling him she looked to Ryan and said "Can you make sure that Sammy's diaper bag has enough supplies. Mrs. Parsons will be here in a moment. I want you to be good for her and to help out with Sammy."

Ryan nodded and came to his mom "I wish Dad was here. When will he be back?"

Lizzy caressed Ryan's face "He'll be back soon. Don't worry. Childbirth is a natural thing. Both you and Sammy were easy births. Nathan will be no different."

Ryan asked "Who was he sent to rescue? You said he was on his flight home before. Did they send him back to Afghanistan?"

"No, not back to Afghanistan. He is in country" Lizzy said and then debated whether to tell Ryan that it was Sam. She decided that although he behaved much older than his years he was still a little boy and should not be burdened with that worry.

So she said "You know mission details cannot be shared. Whoever it is though will be rescued with your Dad leading the unit. And when that is done he will be here for us. Now can you please get Sammy's stuff together and get you go bag too."

Ryan nodded and did as his mom bid him to do. He checked Sammy's bag and added a few toys he knew were his favorites. Then Ryan picked up Sammy and said "Let's go get my go bag ready" as he carried him out of the room.

Lizzy hit speed dial. The phone rang and rang and finally went to voice mail. In a calm voice she said "Don I'm okay, the boys are okay. The boys will be with Cameo's wife. Stewart is coming to take me to the hospital as a precaution. I'm feeling labor pains but they are far apart right now. Focus on finding Sam. Call if you can. I will keep my phone with me. I'll see you when you can get here but find Sam first. Love you."

* * *

 _ **Thirty-Nine**_ _ **and a Half Hours Missing – Small Hospital – La Dore**_

Dr. Jean-Marc Fouché, entered the exam room and said "Je suis désolé pour la longue attente. Permettez-moi de prendre un premier coup d'oeil et vous entrer dans les radiographies."  
(I'm sorry for the long wait. Let me take a first look and then get you into x-rays.)

Ed and Wordy looked at each other. Too bad one of them didn't speak French. The only word they understood was radiographies.

Wordy said "Drake will be back in a moment. He speaks French."

Dr. Fouché's face fell. He did not speak English. This did not bode well for communication. He gestured with his hand towards himself then to the wood in Ed's arm and then stepped to the sink to wash his hands and then put gloves on.

Then he began to remove the wrapping around the wound. He said "Celui qui enveloppa sait ce qu'il fait."  
(Whoever wrapped it knows what he is doing.)

He turned and went to a drawer and withdrew a pair of scissors and opened and closed them a few times as he pointed to Ed's sleeve and said "Je vais couper ce hors d'avoir un regard voir la plaie."  
(I'm just going to cut this off to have a look see at the wound.)

Ed looked at Wordy and joked "My doctor would be a good mime."

Wordy chuckled.

The door to the exam opened. General Braddock entered and said "Kevin I understand Shelley is in labor. As soon as we find Sam and assess his condition I promise to get you to Toronto as fast as possible. I'm only sorry that I cannot have Zach fly you out right now. But …"

Wordy responded "There is no but William. My priority is aligned with yours. Shel and the baby are being taken care of. Finding Sam is my number one priority at the moment."

Dr. Fouché looked closely at the man that entered the room. He asked "Je vous connais? Vous avez l'air très familier."  
(Do I know you? You look very familiar.)

General Braddock looked at the doctor and instantly recognized him. He was older for sure but other than a few lines of age on his face and hair used to be black it was now salt and pepper the man looked the same.

William said "Dr Fouché vous a traité mon fils il y a quelques années. Il avait de la fièvre Q. Je suis le général William Braddock. À quel point le gendarme Lane est blessé?"  
(Dr. Fouché you treated my son years ago. He had Q fever. I'm General William Braddock. How badly is Constable Lane injured?)

Relief that the General spoke French and recognition filled the old doctor's eyes. "Oui. Je me souviens de toi. Il était un petit garçon très malade. J'espère qu'il va bien maintenant. Je commençais juste mon examen sur le gendarme Lane. Il a besoin de rayons X avant que j'aller de l'avant."  
(Yes. I remember you. He was a very sick little boy. I hope he is doing well now. I was just beginning my exam on Constable Lane. He needs x-rays before I move forward.)

William pulled up a picture of Sam and asked "As-tu vu cet homme? C'est mon fils. Il est un gendarme et a été enlevé. Nous l'avons pisté ici, mais avons perdu la piste."  
(Have you seen this man? He is my son. He is a Constable and was abducted. We tracked him here but have lost the trail.)

Jean-Marc shook his head "Non je n'ai pas. Je suis désolé."  
(No I have not. I'm sorry.)

The General then showed pictures of Tocci, Yawls and described the type of car they were likely driving. The doctor responded the same way. He had not seen any of them. He wished the General luck but then got back to his patient. William translated for Ed until Drake returned. Then he headed back outside the clinic where he, Scott, Spike and Cameo had set up a command post.

Ed looked to Wordy just before he was ushered out to the x-ray department and said "You know I'm gonna catch hell for not telling Sophie about this when she called."

Wordy's face fell "I'm so sorry I was stunned by Shel going into labor I should have told her. I should have let you talk to her."

Ed arched a brow "Not your fault buddy. I could call her but I don't want to worry her until I know if there is any damage. I'll call her when the doctor let's me know."

Drake chuckled "Um you mean when I let you know."

Ed deadpanned "Smart-ass."

Drake responded with the same humor "You know I could tell him you can't swallow pain pills and have him give you a shot in the ass."

Wordy chuckled "You do that and you're a dead duck Drake. Don't forget Ed is a sniper. You'd never know what hit you."

Ed chuckled "Perhaps a dart in the ass might teach him a lesson."

Drake zipped his mouth shut. He could tell he was out manned here. He grinned though. Drake liked these men and their comradery reminded him in some ways of Blaze and Winds.

* * *

 _ **Forty**_ _ **Hours Missing – Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan**_

Sam was sluggishly walking a few steps at a time then stopping to breathe. His breaths were shallow now. He could no longer manage deep breaths. The pain coughing caused threatened to send him into blackness every time.

At least it had quit raining Sam thought. The heat of his fever had dried him even though his body was shivering and he was cold to the core. Sam had run out of bunny fluff to leave as a trail quite some time ago.

But Sam knew that his dragging steps through the mud were a clear trail that even a half-blind man could follow. Sam just hoped it did not start raining again and wash them away.

Yawls had been distracted for a long time now thinking over what Sam said. He had not paid attention to the direction that Melpomene was going. In her haste and thinking she knew what direction to go they had gone wide of where they needed to branch off to get to the ridge. When Yawls finally noticed he made the correction.

The course correction disheartened Sam. He thought for sure they had connected via shared pain and abuse by Plouffe. Sam was trying to hold out hope of rescue. He really did not want to die out here. Sam had dug deep into his reserves and constantly gone to his happy place in his mind to keep going even though everything in his body was screaming at him to stop.

A coughing fit overtook him again. It was wet, tight and very weak now. Sam sagged against a tree and the bark scratched his bare back. He was done for. He had nothing in reserves.

Sam's knees gave out and his back scrapped down the bark of the tree. The rough pine bark dug into his back and left several gouges as Sam descended to the ground.

Abner bent down and said "You need to get up. She will kill you here. Get up."

Sam's hooded eyes looked up at Yawls. The pain and exhaustion was clearly written in his features. Sam's weak voice shook from cold "I can't. I've gone as far as I can."

"Get up" Yawls urged as he glanced up the trail at Melpomene.

Abner needed Sam to get up. He had a new plan but he had to get to the ridge. "We need to get to the ridge."

Sam's head lolled towards his chest as he asked "Do you have a memory that makes you happy?"

Abner thought that was a weird thing to ask. He responded "Yeah. How about you?"

Lifting his head Sam said "I've got a few. The day my best friend whacked me with his yo-yo. Got a scar above my eye from that. He was such a kid. That simple toy made him happy. That made me happy."

He sucked in another shallow breath and said "Pushing my little sister Sara on the swings and riding our bikes fast. She died when she was seven but she still lives in my memory."

"Then there is fishing with my dad. We never catch anything but we have a good time just being together" Sam shared.

He smiled and said "Then there is my mom. She's the best in so many ways. Snuck me coffee and called it water when the doctors said I couldn't have any."

Sam's eyes got a faraway look as he said "Then there is my sexy sniper chick. My wife. She is my beauty of life, my everything. I am nothing without her. I'm a lucky man to have her in my life. She gave me the most precious gift in the world. My sweet Sadie. My daughter's smile and bubbly laughter makes me smile."

Coughing over took him again. He gasped for air. Once Sam got enough air back into his lungs he said "I wish I could have heard her call me dada. At least once."

His eyes closed as he said "I've given my all. They can't say I didn't do all in my power to make it."

Staring down at Sam, Yawls thought, no, Sam could not give up now. Abner needed him. Sam made him think. Sam made him calm. Sam showed him that he was not the only innocent that Plouffe hurt.

Abner softly said "The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Sam you have to get up."

Sam opened his eyes. He wasn't sure he heard that correctly. He asked "What did you say?"

Yawls glanced and saw the Melpomene had noticed they had stopped. Quickly and quietly Abner repeated "The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Now get up or she will kill you. I have a plan."

Melpomene yelled "Yawls get him up or I kill him here. I'm sick and tired of being in the filthy outdoors and trudging through mud."

Abner took the knife and sliced the zip tie that bound Sam's wrists. Then he pulled one of Sam's arms over his shoulders and hauled him up. He carefully put his other arm around his waist and held Sam close to him.

As Yawls started forward bearing most of Sam's weight he called out loudly to Melpomene "I've gotta drag his ass to the ridge. If we leave him here he will be found too quickly. Need him to die at the ridge cause I'm not carrying a dead body up there to dispose of it."

Melpomene laughed then called back "Well if he dies along the way you will carry him to the ridge. His body cannot be found. Without a body they cannot tie any of this to me."

She turned and started back down the path Yawls had indicated. She was pissed off that he had gotten them lost earlier. Yawls said he could read maps. They should have already been at the ridge and on their way back. But no, the stupid idiot to the wrong way and now the hike was taking longer. Her feet ached and she began to complain loudly about being outside and how this was his entire fault it was taking so long.

Abner said softly to Sam "I have a happy memory. When I was little my mom would make me hot chocolate with mini marshmallows. My brother hated the marshmallows so my mom always gave me his share."

"Cyrus, my brother was Dad's favorite but I was Mom's favorite. I always knew she loved me. She is in Greece and even thought about me. She got me some pistachios jam. Have you ever had pistachios jam?"

Whoa! Sam could not believe what was happening. He was in shock. This was a completely different man from the one that abducted and beat him.

Sam found himself answering "No never have had that. I'm partial to walnuts. Oatmeal, raisin, walnut cookies are the best. My mom and wife make them for me. My best friend Spike tries to steal them."

Abner chuckled "My mom makes the best rocky road. She puts in extra mini marshmallows for me and adds pistachios to mine even though the rest of the family prefers almonds."

As they walked they traded special things that their moms did to show them that they were special and loved.

Abner held Sam every time a coughing fit overtook him. He wanted to give Sam his jacket but Melpomene would catch on to his plan if he did that but he held him closer and tried to share some body warmth. On the breaks he snuck Sam a sip or two of water when Melpomene was not watching.

Sam wanted too but didn't confide in Yawls that rescuers were probably on their trail. He took what Yawls offered knowing it was the only way he would survive. But he did not trust that Yawls would not slip back into the angry, demented version of himself.

As Yawls carefully hauled him up again, Sam thought that Yawls was like a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Sam hoped that Dr. Jekyll remained present until help arrived.


	17. Are you Sam?, Louise & Nature Hates Mel

**Are you Sam?, Louise & Nature Hates Mel **

* * *

_**Forty**_ _ **Hours Missing – Outside Small Hospital – La Dore**_

William was in a bad mood. They had searched up and down the main road, stopped in all businesses and asked everyone they came across if they had seen any of the three or the car. It was completely useless because not a soul said they had seen anything.

Scott was still plowing through the red tape to move the satellites. William was so close to calling James and demanding it. But using personal connections like that still grated on William. He was trying to respect the authority of those in charge of the satellites. But it was becoming obvious that that might be the only way they would get a lead in Samuel.

The only piece of good news was that the x-ray showed that the fragment of wood embedded in Ed's arm had missed all important structures. Dr. Fouché was in the process of removing the shard and would be cleaning and stitching the wound.

Blaze walked up to the General and said "I've finished the last of the houses on Avenue des Jardins."

William nodded and said "Take a seat and rest a moment Blaze."

Blaze sat down on the curb. He was feeling very frustrated. There had to be a sign of Blondie. Someone had to have seen him or the others. It was like trying to find a needle in a haystack though.

He pulled out his phone to check his messages. He kept it on silent mode while working. He saw a missed call from Lizzy and that she left a voicemail. He pulled up the voicemail just as Winds sat down next to him.

Blaze listened and his head dropped to the top of his knees that were bent in front of him. If this wasn't the worst timing he didn't know what was. He sighed and turned to Winds.

Winds saw the look in Blaze's eyes. "What is it? What's wrong?"

Blaze stated "Lizzy went into labor."

"Ah damn. Blaze I'm sorry. I know you wanted to be there for that" Winds said as he placed his hand on Blaze's shoulder.

William overheard and said "Christ, Lizzy is in labor too."

Blaze whipped his head to the General "Who else is in labor?"

William said "Kevin's wife Shelley."

Spike looked up "Wow. Just wow."

Winds asked "Does Lizzy have someone to walk the boys?"

Jeff heard Winds and quipped " _Walk_ the boys? I'm guessing you meant _watch_ the boys. Otherwise it sounds like the boys need leashes and dog tags."

That generated a chuckle from everyone breaking the tension a bit.

Winds rolled his eyes "Yes of course I meant _watch_ the boys. But you know eventually they probably are gonna have dog tags like their dad."

Still chuckling, Cameo got in on the fun "Joanna was planning on watching the boys. I'm sure she will _walk_ them too. Boys do need exercise you know." Then becoming a little serious he added "Blaze, I can call Joanna if you want me too and check on the boys."

Blaze shook his head as he smiled. He stood and said "No thanks, I'm just gonna go call Lizzy. I'll be back in a moment. Come get me if you get a lead and we have to move out."

Just then Ed, Wordy and Drake exited the clinic.

Leah asked "How's the arm Ed?"

His arm in a sling he said "It will be okay. But I'll have to be in a support role. Can't handle my MP5 or rifle one armed."

William said "You could be my spotter if the need arises."

Ed nodded. That would be weird but he would not feel useless doing that.

Spike asked "Wordy you get through to Shel?"

Wordy smiled and said "Yes. False alarm. The doctor examined her and they were only Braxton Hicks contractions. They are going to keep her over night to monitor her blood pressure that is a little high but Shel and the baby are both alright. The girls are going to stay the night with Sarge."

Spike grinned "That should be interesting. Wonder if they are going to get to paint the Boss' nails."

Everyone chuckled.

William walked to Scott and asked "How's it going?"

Scott said in a frustrated voice "Someone needs to kick Colonel Forslund's ass. He keeps throwing up one roadblock after another."

Then Scott stood and started pacing. He needed to let off some steam before he blew a gasket.

General Braddock blew out a frustrated breath. He was more than willing to kick Forslund's ass right about now. That man was a royal prick.

Mathieu Chasseur was walking to the clinic. He had gotten the call from the nurse but with his wife out of town at the women's retreat he could not leave a crying Louise with the sitter. He had called Dr. Fouché and let him know he would be in as soon as possible. Jean-Marc had been understanding and told him to take whatever time was needed to calm Louise down.

Jean-Marc had never married or had children and he treated Louise like his own grand-daughter. He had been very helpful over the past two years as they dealt with Sam's death. It had not been an easy road.

Louise insisted he wait until she drew a picture of Sam. Mathieu had been quite shocked when Louise finished the drawing. It looked nothing like Sam. His son had dark brown hair and hazel eyes and a complexion like his which was darker.

The drawing he now carried to show Jean-Marc was of a man that was older than eighteen and had blonde hair, blue eyes and a light complexion. He never knew Louise could draw faces so well. She normally drew animals; imaginary ones like unicorns, dragons or ones of her own creation like mice with wings and tiger rabbits.

So lost in his own musings, Mathieu bumped into a man. He instantly started to apologize "Excusez-moi, je suis désolé pour …" but the rest of his words died in his throat.  
(Excuse me I'm sorry for …)

Mathieu stared.

Scott said "I'm sorry I wasn't watching where I was going."

He saw the stricken look on the man's face. It was like he saw a ghost.

Scott tried again "I'm sorry." Then he realized maybe the man only spoke French and asked "Êtes-vous monsieur bien? Je suis désolé je suis tombé sur vous."  
(Are you alright sir? I'm sorry I bumped into you.)

Mathieu gathered his wits and looked at the men outside the clinic. It was a large group of soldiers and police officers. There was one woman too. His eyes went back to the man he ran into. There were no bruises on his face like in the drawing.

He tentatively asked "Êtes-vous Sam?"  
(Are you Sam?)

Scott paled at the question but then in his haste to find potential information he spoke English "No I'm his cousin Scott. Have you seen Sam?"

Everyone heard Scott and moved forward crowding around.

Mathieu was glad he spoke English and responded "No I have not seen Sam."

William stepped forward with Mark and Jeff right beside him "Why did you ask if Scott was Sam?"

Mathieu looked at four men that were clearly related. All had varying shades of blonde hair, the same general body build and the same striking blue eyes. Still a little dazed at what he was seeing he said "You speak French?"

"Yes. But since you speak English, please continue in English for the benefit of those here that do not speak French. Samuel is my son and he is a Constable in Toronto. He was abducted forty hours ago. We tracked him here but we lost his trail. So I ask again, why did you ask Scott if he was Sam?" William stated.

Dr. Chasseur responded as he unfolded the picture Louise drew "Because my daughter drew this picture. She called him Sam. I did not believe her. She has a history of making up stories about her deceased big brother whose name was Sam. But then she insisted I wait until she drew a picture of Sam. This does not look like my son but it bears a striking resemblance to him." He pointed at Scott.

Jeff grinned "Damn that twin thing finally came in handy."

William said "You daughter saw my son. Where? When? Did he say anything to her?"

Wordy was staring at the picture and said quietly to Ed "I think your gut is right. Sam's hurt. She drew a black eye and bruised jaw."

Mathieu said "I don't remember exactly what she said. I only live a short distance from here. If you would like to follow me home we can ask her. But please. She is only seven and has been traumatized by her brother's death. I do not want to upset her more."

William nodded and said "Perhaps only Scott and I should go with you."

Mathieu saw the woman officer and said "Louise does better with women. Perhaps the female officer should come too."

William nodded then the four of them took off at a brisk walk.

As he walked Mathieu thought that he would need to buy out the entire art supplies department to apologize to Louise for not believing her. He had messed up big time and he just hoped it did not cost a man his life.

Blaze came back and noticed that the General, Scott and Leah were missing. He asked Winds "Where did they go?"

Winds beamed "We just might have a lead on Blondie. They went to go talk to a little girl that saw Blondie."

"Hot damn" Blaze said as he slapped Winds' back.

Mike asked "So how is Lizzy?"

Blaze said "She is doing well. The contractions are far apart. If we find Blondie soon I might just make it back in time to be there when Nathan is born."

Spike said "How cool would it be if Blaze and Wordy both had a kid born on the same day. It would be awesome wouldn't it?"

The men all set about checking their gear and preparing to move. All of them were hoping that this was a valid lead for more than one reason. Primarily they wanted to find and rescue Sam but additionally they all wanted to get Blaze and Wordy home to their wives so they could welcome their newest additions to their families into the world.

* * *

 _ **Forty and a Half Hours**_ _ **Missing – Dr. Chasseur's Home**_

Mathieu Chasseur opened the door to his home and ushered them inside to the family room. Then he went to the base of the stairs and called out "Louise, peut vous s'il vous plaît descendre les escaliers un moment?"  
(Louise, can you please come down stairs a moment?)

Louise wiped her eyes when she heard her dad's voice. She was still upset that he did not believe her. She had done her best to draw the picture of Sam. At least her dad took the picture with him.

She put down the photo of her and her big brother on her desk and thought, I miss you Sammy. Then she stood up and called out "Venant papa."  
(Coming Daddy.)

As Louise slowly walked down the stairs she wondered why her dad was back home so quickly. Louise saw her dad and said "Pourquoi êtes-vous à la maison?"  
(Why are you home?)

Mathieu knelt down to Louise's level and embraced her then he said "Louise, je vous dois des excuses. Nous parlerons plus tard. Mais d'abord je dois vous parler à certaines personnes. Je veux que vous parlez anglais à eux parce qu'ils ne les comprennent pas le français."  
(Louise I owe you an apology. We will talk later. But first I need you to talk to some people. I need you to speak English to them because they don't all understand French.)

Louise asked "Are they looking for Sam?"

Mathieu nodded then stood and clasped Louise's hand and led her to the family room.

When he entered Mathieu realized he had not introduced himself. So he said "I am Dr. Mathieu Chasseur and this is my daughter Louise Chasseur."

General Braddock looked at the little girl and saw that her eyes were glued on Scott. Goodness that twin thing was not missed by the little girl.

Louise stared for a long moment with an artist's eye then said "You are not Sam but you look a lot like him. Only older and you don't have the owies he had on his face."

Scott knelt down to her level and spoke to her in the same soft voice he used with is children "My name is Scott. Sam is my cousin. Your father says you saw Sam. Did he talk to you?"

Louise nodded.

Mathieu was surprised when Louise let go of his hand and went directly to Scott. She showed no fear of men like she normally did. He looked at the General and shrugged as if to say 'I didn't think she would talk to men'.

Leah stood back and watched with a smile as she saw shades of Sam in his cousin Scott. She had come but partly knew she would not be needed if Scott was anything like Sam was with Sadie. Leah hoped one day to find a man that would be a good father like Sam was. Heck, like Greg, Ed and Wordy were too.

Louise went straight to Scott and reached out to touch his jaw "Sam had big owies on his jaw and his eye that were pretty shades of purple, red and blue, almost black. He looked sad."

Dropping her hand Louise said "Sam had a blanket over his shoulders. He sounded funny when he talked."

"Funny how?" William asked as he took a knee too. Then he added "I am Samuel's father, William Braddock."

Turning to her dad she said "Braddock that is the name he said. Sam Braddock." The she turned back to Sam's dad and said "When he first said Sam I thought about my Sammy. He died saving me. He drowned. I miss him."

The term 'my Sammy' pulled at William's heart. That sounded so possessive just like Sara had been with Samuel.

Mathieu gently prodded "Louise what did Sam say to you?"

Louise looked up at her dad for a moment with tears in her eyes. She missed Sammy. But then she turned back to Sam's dad and said "Sam said that he was going to the ridge where he got sick when he was six."

Confused a bit by what Sam had said to her Louise looked back to her dad and asked "Why would he go to a ridge when he is sick? Does he get better there? I hope so because he sounded really sick. He felt kind of hot when I showed him my unicorn drawings and he made that funny sound when he talked like Mrs. Jacquet makes."

William stood and looked at Mathieu "What kind of sound is that?"

Mathieu answered "Mrs. Jacquet has COPD and uses oxygen. She wheezes and coughs a lot."

Scott stood and looked at his uncle "His lungs. That is not good."

Jeff having heard all of this over the headset said "The ridge is about a forty minute drive and an hours hike. Half that if we double time it. There are two paths. One takes you to the top and one to the base of the ridge."

William looked at Louise and said "Thank you very much Louise. You have been very helpful."

Mathieu looked at the General and said "What about his lungs? Do you need a doctor? I have my bag. I could go with you."

General Braddock stated "We have a medic with us." He glanced at Louise and couched his words carefully "We are prepared to handle things when we find him. But if you could be standing by at the hospital if we need additional support."

Realizing that the military and police were involved, Mathieu read between the lines and understood that it was not safe for him to go. Whoever had taken the officer must be quite dangerous.

Mathieu stated "I'll get the hospital ready."

Spike said over the headset "I need the doctor's email. I need to email him the Proper Care and Feeding of Samtastic manual so he can pre-read it and know the precautions to take with Sam."

Scott chuckled at that. That damned manual had come in handy more than once. He quickly got the information from the doctor and relayed what would be sent and briefly why. Then the General, Scott and Leah headed out of the house and found the SUVs waiting for them out front.

The SUV's were speeding to the location a few seconds later. Blaze was driving the lead vehicle and he set a blazing speed. He resolved that it would not take forty minutes to get there.

As they drove, Jeff began briefing everyone on the location and trails.

Ed's phone rang and he answered it "Rollie we have a new location."

Rollie said "Damned good news. I have more, I have visual on you and we are about a mile behind you. What channel are you on?" Rollie stepped on the gas and sped up to catch up with the other SUVs.

Ed gave them the channel and then Jeff repeated the details he had just shared. Jeff, Blaze, Mike, Ed, Mason and Rollie made tactical plans as they drove.

General Braddock called Jules and gave her an update. Then he called Zach and updated him.

Zach informed him that he would fly ahead and he and Mark would begin an overhead search of the area with two goals in mind. First, find Sam if possible. Second, look for potential landing areas closer to the area they believed Sam was located.

* * *

 _ **Forty and a Half**_ _ **Hours Missing – Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan**_

Sam leaned heavily on Yawls. He was beyond talking now. It took all his effort to simply drag his feet and breathe. He was sure he briefly blacked out a few times as he coughed weakly in the last ten minutes.

Yawls found a flat rock and stopped then eased Sam down onto it. They were near a small creek. He called out to Melpomene "I need to refill the water bottle and take a leak. Let's stop here for a moment."

Melpomene groused "If you didn't drink so much you wouldn't need to pee."

But the urge to pee hit Melpomene at that time too. She had drunk all the coffee in the thermos. She took off her backpack and set it down then she headed to a thick patch of trees surrounded by bushes. Those bushes would afford her privacy.

Sam watched Melpomene head into the stand of trees and through the bushes and a small smile crossed his face. He closed his eyes and rested. Sam was barely hanging on.

Melpomene dropped her pants and squatted down behind a large bush with pretty leaves. Some of the leaves brushed her bare butt and she swiped them away. There were three leaves to a stem and she thought they would make a nice potted plant. When this was all over she might get one or two. She would have time to take care of a plant or two. Better yet hire a hot guy to come by and take care of the plants while she ogled him and sipped wine.

When she was done going she reached into her jacket pocket to pull out her tissues. She cursed "Dammit" when she found all her tissues were soggy and wet. The rain must have dripped in from her sleeve making them wet.

She looked at the pretty leaves and decided it was better to use them than the alternative which was nothing. She broke off a large bunch of leaves and used them. Then she stood and buttoned her pants.

Melpomene screamed as a non-venomous red-bellied snake slithered near her. She hated snakes. Melpomene back peddled and her foot hit a patch of moss that was slick from the rain. She fell backwards and her butt landed hard on a sharp rock. She screamed in pain.

She rolled to the side and onto her knees to get up. When she put her hand down it landed in something soft. A disgusting smell met her nose. She looked at her hand and then screeched "Shit! I landed in deer shit!"

Melpomene gained her feet went crashing angrily through the bushes to get to the stream. On her way she tripped on a rock and fell down.

Her fall startled a small black and white rodent that sprayed her jacket with the most disgusting smell. Melpomene screamed "Skunk."

Clamoring up she continued her race to the creek. Her hand was now covered in deer excrement and her jacket with the foulest odor.

Melpomene was almost to the creek when she heard the buzzing sound of bees. She waved her hand to ward them off and ended up flinging deer poop onto her face. She also only made them angry and she was stung on the neck and hand.

In her haste to get the disgusting poop off her face and away from the bees, Melpomene ran to the creek. Intent solely on getting there to get the crap off, she was not paying attention to her surroundings and her jeans got snagged on a low branch of a tree. Her jeans ripped as she tried to yank free and then she lost her balance.

She went crashing over a rotting log and ended up face first in a deep mud pit.

Melpomene struggled to get up but fell several times as she tried to get her feet under her. It was too slick and deep for her to stand so she ended up crawling on her hands and knees to get out of the mud pit. The string of vulgar curse words that flowed loudly from her mouth would make a sailor blush.

When she finally made it to the creek, Melpomene ripped off the fouled jacket then plunged into the extremely cold water to rinse off the poop and mud.

As she knelt in the middle of the stream and pulled out the stingers of the bees a large flock of geese flew overhead. She was scrubbing mud off her face when she felt something hit the top of her head. She reached up and felt it then brought her fingers down to her eyes.

"God damned goose shit on me!" Melpomene shrieked and then followed that with more cussing as she dunked her head repeatedly in the water to rinse out the goose poop.

Sam and Yawls sat watching the whole thing with smirks on their faces.

Abner said "Nature sure hates Melpomene."

Sam tried not to laugh knowing it would cause coughing. His breath was so short that he was able to wheeze out a few words at a time "She's gonna … be very … uncomfortable … in a … few hours."

Abner snickered "No she is gonna be uncomfortable now, soaking wet and stinking like skunk."

Sam shook his head slightly and wheezed out slowly between breaths "I was … thinking … more that … she peed … in a … poison ivy … bush. If she … used … any of … those leaves … won't be … very fun … for her … in a … few … hours."

Yawls chuckled. Then he passed Sam the bottle of water and said "Drink before she comes back."

Laboring to raise the bottle Sam took a small sip then asked haltingly as he fought to get air in "Why … get to … ridge? Can't we … just … leave now?"

Abner said "No she has a gun. If we try to leave she will shoot you. Maybe me too."

"Your … plan?" Sam asked.

Then Sam struggled to lift the bottle to his lips for another sip desperately needing the water but weak as a newborn kitten. His energy was so depleted Sam found it impossible to gather enough strength to simply raise the bottle to drink. The bottle fell from his grasp as a coughing fit hit him hard.

The coughing was tight, weak and raw and the edges of Sam's vision started to go gray. Sam could not get enough air in and he started to pitch forward as unconsciousness claimed him. In Sam's quest to survive, he had driven his body to its limit.

Yawls caught Sam before he crashed to the ground. Abner laid Sam carefully on the ground as Melpomene came storming up to him. Yawls thought she looked like a drowned cat as she hissed at him.

He said "I could build a fire for you so you can dry off."

Melpomene stormed over to her back pack and pulled out the gun and pointed it at Sam's chest as she said "I'm sick of the damned outdoors. I should kill him right now. Why are you letting him sleep? Get him up. We have to get to the ridge and then get the hell out of this place."

The anger wanted to creep back in as Yawls listened to Melpomene rant and talk about killing Sam. He tried to tune her out and focused on his happy memory. He was not here. He was not listening to anger. He was drinking hot chocolate with lots of mini marshmallows with his mom. Mom was telling him he was a good boy.

Melpomene continued to rant and rave until her throat was raw from screaming. She stopped and shivered because she was cold and miserable in her soaking wet clothing. Her boots squished as she walked. Her hair hung in ugly soaking strands. She had broken off four more nails. Her makeup was a disaster.

Moving closer to Sam she cocked the gun and screeched "I'm gonna kill him. This is all his fault. Joseph was supposed to get that spot on SRU. But no, this guy comes out of nowhere and gets the spot. Lance got the spot instead of Joseph. That worthless, cuckold who could not even satisfy his wife got the spot that Joseph deserved. I should be sitting at home right now living the life of ease. But, no! I have to be out here taking care of business for Joseph."

Sam had regained consciousness but had not moved. Not out of a desire for stealth but because it took energy he did not have to move. Sam heard everything Melpomene said and was reeling inside. Lance and Joseph? He had not placed the name Joseph before when she said it. They tried out together for Team Three.

Both were good. Joseph was a better marksman but Lance scored better overall. Lance had better judgement and was a better candidate for negotiator. Something they needed to round out the skills on Team Three. Sam had told Rollie he could improve Lance's marksmanship. So they had decided on Lance over Joseph.

Did they know she was up to this? Was Joseph involved? Was Lance involved? Sam didn't want to think so. He liked Lance. He had liked Joseph too.

Yawls finally came out of his happy place when she cocked the gun. He stood and said "No. He's mine to kill. If you kill him I will not be cured. I need to be a real man. You said if I killed the enemy of my enemy then I would be cured."

Melpomene lowered the gun then said "Then drag him up to the ridge and let's be done with this. How far are we anyways."

Yawls estimated the pace they could travel with Sam unable to walk by himself and the distance they had gone the wrong way. He answered "About thirty minutes."

Screeching in frustration Melpomene stormed over to her backpack and put it on.

Her voice dripped with venom when she said "You said it was only an hour's hike. That was two and a half hours ago. No wonder the Colonel wouldn't let you plan missions. You suck. Now pick him up and let's go."

As Yawls bent down to pick up Sam he thought that Melpomene was beginning to sound an awful lot like Plouffe. He hated Plouffe. As he thought about Melpomene he muttered "Enemy of my enemy is my enemy."

Sam cringed, oh no. Yawls was back to thinking he was his enemy. But he was shocked when Yawls gently picked him up and carried him. He had been expecting to be dragged or at least manhandled roughly.

He cracked his eyes open enough to see Yawls' eyes in the fading light of the early autumn night. He couldn't tell what he saw in them.

Coughing racked his body at that moment. All Sam could do after it subsided was to let his head sag backwards. He had zero energy left in his tank and he felt as boneless as the empty shell of Sadie's yellow bunny he still managed to clutch in his hand.

Then Sam felt Yawls shift him and his head no longer hung down but was moved against Yawls' chest.

Abner whispered "Don't worry Sam, I got you. I won't let Plouffe harm you anymore. Plouffe is done harming innocents. Plouffe needs to die. I'm gonna make sure he does on the ridge." Abner focused his eyes ahead of him keeping Plouffe in sight as they continued to trudge towards the ridge.

As Sam's body pulled him into unconsciousness he thought, oh shit I'm out of my league here.

.

* * *

 _ **AN:**_ _Typos can lead to funnies. The whole 'walk the boys' scenario morphed into what it is because I typed walk instead of watch._ _ **Venetiaj**_ _did a beta read for me and sent me the comment 'I'm guessing you meant watch the boys otherwise it sounds like the boys need leashes and dog tags.' It made me laugh and I thought it would work to interject some humor and break the tension for the guys. Thanks Venetiaj. See she makes the stories better with great inputs._


	18. Dream - Myth or Reality? & Action Plans

**Dream - Myth or Reality? & Action Plans**

* * *

 _ **Forty and a Half**_ _ **Hours Missing – General Braddock's Home**_

Jules sat in the large comfortable chair with her feet up on the ottoman. She had just finished nursing Sadie and the little one was full and content. Jules held her close as Sadie's eyes blinked increasingly slowly and stayed closed for longer periods. Sadie was fighting going to sleep.

Singing a lullaby softly to Sadie, Jules saw when her precious daughter's eyes finally closed for a nap. The soft breathing was regular and Sadie's face was angelic. Jules adjusted in the seat and positioned the pillows around them to secure Sadie in place.

Jules finished the lullaby and then simply gazed at Sadie as her mind turned to Sam.

The General had just called a few minutes ago to say they had a lead. A little girl had seen and spoken with Sam. She had drawn a picture to convince her father it was not her brother Sam. Jules thought that she would like to talk to the girl and made note to get her full name from the General when they next spoke.

Leaning her head back on the comfortable chair Jules closed her eyes. She had slept little last night and was feeling the fatigue right now. Having Sadie safely asleep in her arms Jules snuggled down even more in the large over-sized chair that Mason normally sat in.

She let her mind drift as she concentrated on sending Sam positive thoughts that help was almost there. But even as she did, the sense of dread was ever increasing.

Needing some distraction from her ever increasing worry for Sam, Jules opened her eyes and picked up the book she had been reading earlier. She wasn't sure why she was drawn to the book. Maybe it was because of Melpomene's name and that of her mother and grandmother, all Greek goddess names. It had been ages since she read anything on Greek mythology.

Jules flipped open to a page that had a depiction of several gods and goddesses. They were all dressed in typical Greek garb, long flowing white robes. She read the brief description of each of them. But her eyes became heavier and heavier and blinked slowly like Sadie's had several minutes ago.

Even though she wanted to stay awake with the guys getting so close, Jules drifted off to sleep.

 _She took a step and then another feeling the urgency to get someplace. Her long flowing white robe, that was secured over one shoulder only, moved in time to her speedy walk._

 _Jules made it to a creek and stopped a moment as a water bottle floated by. The water stilled a moment and Jules saw her reflection. It was not her own. She looked like something out of Greek mythology._

 _Her thoughts were interrupted as a beautiful woman, dressed as she was, approached. This new woman had flowers weaved into her hair and as she approached she called out "Athena there you are. We are all waiting for you. Come, come quick. We need you. He needs you."_

 _Jules asked "Who are you?"_

 _The woman smiled as she reached out for Jules' hand "Athena now is not the time for games. Come. We are all waiting; we need your direction and wisdom. He has done everything in his power to survive but he needs your help."_

 _When Athena did not move and pulled her hand away Gaia said "Very well, I am Gaia, goddess of the Earth, often called Mother Nature. You are Athena, goddess of wisdom, poetry, art, and the strategic side of war. Now come. Hurry. We need your help. He needs your help."_

 _Jules was confused but followed Gaia through the woods. In a little clearing with a flat rock she saw several more people dressed similarly as her. What was going on and why did Gaia call her Athena?_

 _Gaia approached the group and said "I found Athena. They will be here soon. We need a plan."_

 _Jules asked "Who are all of you and why am I here?"_

 _Elpis looked at Jules and smiled. She was beautiful as Athena. She said "Athena, I am Elpis, the spirit of hope. We are all here to help. I've assembled those who would come. We have Até, Apollo, Aristaeus, Astraea, Chronos, Cybele, Dinlas, Gaia, Kratos, Manea and Nemesis. All have agreed to help you help him."_

 _Jules looked at each as they nodded or waved as their names were said. Jules' brain was working double time. The names, they were all Greek gods or goddess. And Gaia called her Athena. Another Greek goddess._

 _Astraea, the goddess of justice stepped forward and asked "What is your plan? We need a strategy if we are going to help him survive."_

 _Até, goddess of mischief, bounced lively and rubbed her hands together "Oh please, please let us cause problems for her."_

 _Nemesis, goddess of retribution, for once was in alignment with Até. She said sternly "Até is right. It is time to seek some form of vengeance for what she has done. It could help. We need to slow them down."_

 _Jules was wondering, slow who down. But things were starting to form in her head. She was in the woods. They looked familiar. Then Jules saw and her heart nearly broke in two._

" _Sam" Jules blurted out and watched as Yawls slowly helped Sam sit down on the flat rock near her._

 _She went to Sam and knelt down close. Jules heard his shallow, rasping breaths. Sam's handsome face was all bruised. She looked at his bare chest and it was covered in angry, multi-colored bruises. One long narrow one looked especially deep like he had been hit with something long and hard. Sam's eyes showed extreme pain and his face and body exhibited utter exhaustion. He was shivering with cold._

" _Oh Sam" Jules crooned as she reached out to caress his face gently. She then said "Hang on. Help is coming. They know where you are. They are on their way. Hold on a little longer."_

 _Sam made no indication he heard her. His eyes were glassy as he gazed toward Melpomene._

 _She needed to help him. He was at the end of his endurance, Jules could tell he had dug deep and used every ounce of energy he had in him to survive. Firm resolve had Jules standing up as she looked at the others. Gaia and Elpis said 'help him'. They were all here to help her help Sam. She needed a plan._

 _Jules turned to Chronos, who she knew was the god of time, and requested "Freeze time for them a moment. I need to think for a minute."_

 _Chronos snapped his fingers and Sam, Yawls and Melpomene froze as they were._

 _Jules paced as she thought. She turned to Manea, goddess of insanity and the dead, and asked "Why is Yawls helping Sam?"_

 _Manea answered "You know. You profiled him. He is easily manipulated."_

 _Jules smiled. Sam was better with words than he gave himself credit for. He must have said something to sway Yawls. She looked at Melpomene and saw the sneer and outright hate that was frozen in her features._

" _We have to make them slow down. Cause a distraction so the others can catch up. Sam will be safe when the others get here" Jules stated._

 _Then she came up with a plan to give it to that narcissistic monster that had caused Sam all this pain. It would slow them down. She quickly explained her plan and everyone was in agreement and eagerly came up with ideas. Jules thought, as she watched Até, that the goddess reminded her of Spike in full prank mode._

 _Chronos released time. Then Astraea whispered to Yawls while Manea whispered to Melpomene. Jules watched as Yawls told Melpomene he was getting water and to pee and as Melpomene decided she had to go too._

 _Kratos, god of strength and power, sat next to Sam and wrapped an arm around his shoulders holding him up as he whispered "Watch what happens to that witch. You need a good laugh."_

 _Elpis sat on Sam's other side and whispered words of hope to Sam trying to bolster his spirit._

 _Gaia suggested to Melpomene to head into the stand of trees and that the bushes would provide privacy._

 _Antheia, goddess of gardens, flowers, swamps, and marshes, took over and whispered how pretty the three leaf stems were as Até caused the tissues to become soaked. Antheia then suggested to Melpomene that she use the leaves._

 _They stepped back as Cybele, goddess of caverns, mountains, nature and wild animals, sent a snake in the direction of Melpomene. They all laughed as Melpomene screamed and scrambled backwards._

 _Gaia moved a pointed rock to just where Melpomene would land on her butt._

 _Aristaeus, god of animal husbandry, bee-keeping, and fruit trees, placed deer poop where her hand landed. He grinned as she cussed. The prissy, self-absorbed, human needed to be taken down several pegs. Aristaeus was happy to help._

 _Bouncing gleefully, Até urged Melpomene to run for the creek but then tripped her up. She laughed as Melpomene went falling and landed sprawled out on the ground._

 _Cybele got there in just enough time and talked to the skunk. She told it to spray the woman. The skunk happily did as asked and let loose everything it had._

 _As Melpomene rose and continued her run, Aristaeus sent a swarm of bees after her._

 _Nemesis grinned when two of the bees stung Melpomene and then she high-fived Aristaeus as she said "Good one. Should have sent wasps though, bigger stingers."_

 _Gaia caused a branch to grow out of the bottom of a tree just in time to snag Melpomene's pants._

 _When Melpomene wrenched her pants loose, Antheia gave Melpomene a push. It knocked Melpomene off balance and sent her over the rotted log into the mud pit._

 _Everyone laughed as Melpomene tried to get out of it._

 _Jules could not believe how good it felt to watch the woman suffer some indignities. They were minor to what Sam had endured by the looks of Sam. But it felt good to see her so filthy and it was slowing her down too. Jules knew without a doubt that the team and unit would get to Sam soon._

 _As they all watched Melpomene in the cold creek washing, Cybele decided she was not done and sent a flock of geese overhead and encouraged them to drop their loads. A smug smile lit Cybele's face as one load hit its mark and landed on the top of Melpomene's head._

 _Até went to the creek and popped off four fake nails for good measure. She looked at the wet, bedraggled witch and said unheard by Melpomene "Take that you witch. You're not so pretty now huh."_

 _Apollo, god of the sun, music, healing, and herding, whispered to Abner "Calm, remain calm. You need to help Sam. Think happy thoughts."_

 _Astraea joined in and whispered to Abner "Sam is your friend. Melpomene is the enemy. Sam is an innocent like you."_

 _While Melpomene was in the stream, Manea snarled at Melpomene "Tell them. Get mad and tell them why you want Sam dead. Come on you want to tell them. You have to show you are superior and in power. So tell them just how worthless they are."_

 _Jules looked at Manea and said "What are you doing? That was not in the plan. You are going to get Sam killed."_

 _Manea laughed manically "No, no I'm not. But she has to get angry and tell them. Sam and Abner need to hear her insanity. Abner needs to know what she actually thinks of him so he can help Sam. If he doesn't hear her put him down it will be too easy for her to sway him back to her side."_

 _Hearing a noise from the rock Jules turned back to Sam. He was falling. Oh god. She raced to Sam as Dinlas, guardian of the ancient city of Lamark, where wounded heroes could heal after battle, knelt beside him._

 _Dinlas looked up at Jules and said "Athena, he is weary. He needs rest or he will not make it. Let me take him to Lamark for a bit."_

 _Manea responded "Not yet. He has to hear what Melpomene says."_

 _Jules nodded and replied "Dinlas, you can take him after he hears."_

 _They all listened to Melpomene rage. Jules cringed when she saw Melpomene point the gun at Sam. She hoped Manea was right. Jules blew out a breath of relief when Melpomene lowered the gun._

 _Kratos whispered to Abner "Pick him up and carry him. He cannot walk. I will give you the strength you need to carry him."_

 _Manea whispered in Abner's ear "Do you see Plouffe. He's just ahead of you. See him. You need to kill him. Do it at the ridge."_

 _Nemesis smiled thinking what appropriate vengeance that would be if Abner killed Melpomene thinking she was Plouffe._

 _Astraea pulled Manea away from Abner and said "What did you do? They will kill Abner if he goes after Melpomene. We need him to be safe too. He was an innocent."_

 _Manea shrugged and smiled with a tad bit of insanity flickering in her eyes "Oh well, he did cause Yankee's death and he hurt Sam. One more dead I'm okay with."_

" _It would be fitting. He has to pay for what he did to Sam" Nemesis stated._

 _Jules was listening but then Sam started coughing. She almost cried when she heard how weak his coughing was. Sam was clearly in so much pain and at the end of his endurance._

 _She stepped close to Sam and brushed through his hair once as his head lolled back. Jules lifted Sam's head and laid it on Abner's chest as she instructed "Dinlas, take Sam to Lamark now."_

 _Dinlas placed a hand on Sam's head and Sam became unconscious. Dinlas looked at Athena and said "He is there. He will rest and heal a bit now. He will regain some strength before he has to fight again."_

 _Jules wondered what Dinlas meant by fight again. But then Chronos snapped his fingers and the world around Jules changed._

 _She was no longer at the flat rock with the creek nearby. Jules was now at the top of the ridge. It was almost completely dark so she knew time had passed. Jules stared in horror as she watched the shadowy scene unfold before her._

 _Jules screamed "Nooooooooooo."_

Jerking awake, Jules' heart was hammering in her chest and her breaths were erratic. It felt so real.

Apollo had raced into the room hearing Jules scream. Apollo asked "Jules are you okay? I heard you scream."

Jules glanced at Sadie and found her soundly sleeping. Then she looked at Apollo and said "I have to call the General. I have to tell him something. Do they have a satellite phone with them?"

Apollo nodded "Yeah, Mason took one so I could contact him if anything went awry here."

"Get it. I have to call now. Sam's life depends on it" Jules stated as she sat up carefully cradling Sadie in the crook of her arm.

Apollo raced from the room to get the satellite phone.

Jules looked at the clock on the mantle and noticed that she had been asleep for nearly a half hour. It had only felt like seconds. Jules stood up and then placed Sadie carefully into the large chair and tucked the pillows around her so she would not roll out of it. Then she began to pace waiting for Apollo to return.

She glanced at the book of Greek mythology and wondered how much of her dream was inspired by that. But she had a gut feeling that what she saw at the end, the thing that woke her, that was reality. What she didn't know though was whether it already happened or if she would be able to stop it before it happened.

* * *

 _ **Forty-One**_ _ **Hours Missing – Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan – Helicopter**_

Zach had flown over the area several times searching for Sam. The woods were too dense to see anything. Uncle Mark had been searching with binoculars but they had failed to locate Sam and the others.

He had however located the car. He called in the location to Blaze. Zach had also located a clearing just large enough to land that was close to the top of the ridge. There was no place to land near the bottom of the ridge so he hoped that Sam was headed to the top.

Zach called out to his uncle "Do you think I should land near the top and wait?"

Mark shook his head "I'd head back to the car. If Jeff can discern which direction they took and if they are heading to the top then I can lower the rappelling ropes. The men can climb up to the helo. Then you can fly them to the top of the ridge faster than if they hiked."

"Good plan" Zach called out and turned the helicopter back towards where the car was parked.

He knew he could get low enough that it would be a short climb for the guys. He wished he could land there but unfortunately there were too many trees.

Mark contacted William over the short-wave radio and informed him of the plan.

* * *

 _ **Forty-One**_ _ **Hours Missing – Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan – Car Location**_

Nine SUV came to an abrupt halt. Tires would have screeched if it were asphalt. But since it was gravel and dirt, only clouds of dust rose. Twenty-four men and one woman piled out of the SUVs and began gearing up.

Jeff, Winds, Jack, Jude, Craig and Daniel immediately spread out to determine the direction. The rain had washed away all traces of tracks.

Blaze, Mason, William, Mike, Ed, Leah, Spike and Rollie were doing final checks of the gear.

William checked his Remi and then zipped the bag and slung it over his shoulder. He looked at Ed and wished Ed's arm was in shape to fire. He trusted Ed behind the scope and William had a sinking feeling that it was going to come down to taking a shot.

In his mind it would be better if they had more snipers. William knew Russ and Craig were good behind the scope, he had seen them in practice. Samuel had talked about Jude and Mike Fringle when he last visited so William knew they were good too. But he really wished Ed could be behind one too.

Cameo came up the General with the short-wave radio and said "It is the Colonel Sir."

Taking the radio William asked "Mark did you find him?"

 _[Mark answered "No joy, too dense. We are heading back to the area where the car is located. I think we should break into three groups."_

 _"One we transport to the top of the ridge. Zach has a landing position close to the top but the group will need to climb the rappelling lines to get into the helo. Group two could trek up to the top and group three trek to the base."_

 _"That way if the helicopter startles them and they backtrack we have both directions covered. And if they are at the top of the ridge we have a group there in very short order."]_

"Smart plan. We'll break the groups and be ready when you arrive" William stated then ended the transmission and handed the radio back to Cameo.

William turned to Blaze, Mike, Ed and Rollie "We need three groups. One for a trip to the ridge in the helo. Zach found a landing area close to the top. One to hike to the top and one to hike to the base."

They began discussing the best way to break out the teams.

Drake hoisted his medic pack on his back. It was rather heavy seeing as he packed for almost any contingency. Wordy grabbed the second backpack before Drake could grab it and he offered "Let me carry this. You already have a heavy load."

"Thanks Wordy" Drake said. Then he added "That one is important. It has oxygen in it. Based on what Louise said I'm sure we will need that."

Wordy responded "Yeah, this weather can't have helped any. You know about his lungs?"

"Yeah" Drake stated and then patted the worried man's back "We'll get to him in time Wordy. I've treated Sam before. I know all about his special medical needs."

Derek, Blaze's new unit medic asked "What's so special about Sam's medical needs?"

Drake and Wordy shared a look and Wordy replied "We should let you read the Proper Care and Feeding of Samtastic manual. Sam's unique."

Looking a Derek, Drake stated seriously "I'm gonna need your help Derek. But there are two rules you must follow when treating Sam. First, you do not startle Sam or you could end up dead. I'm not joking. Second and just as important, if Sam is conscious you do not let him see any needles."

Derek looked confused "Why? I mean the needles part."

Mason overheard and simply said "Later. Enough that you know and follow the rules right now."

"Got it" Derek said hoisting his own medic pack onto his back and adjusting his grip on his weapon.

Spike wanted to move out. He was ready to go. He headed to where Jeff was looking around for traces that would indicate a direction.

Jeff was frustrated. He should have found a trace already. Time was wasting. He strode in the direction he would take if he would be heading to the top of the ridge. His keen eyes were scanning everything.

Spike caught up and said "Did they go this way?"

"I'm still looking for trace" Jeff ground out in an irritated voice. But then Jeff said "Sorry, not angry with you."

Spike already understood it and said "No problem. I'm just as frustrated. We were so close and they slipped by us."

He strode a little to the left near a tree intending to kick it to let out the frustration he felt. Spike pulled back his foot and was swinging forward when his eyes landed on something that shouldn't be in the forest.

Quickly, Spike squatted down and reached out and picked up a little bit of white fluff. He stood and called out to Jeff "This stuffing looks just like what I saw in the basement."

Jeff rushed over. He took the fluff from Spike and examined it. Then a grin crossed his face.

Turning, Jeff headed up the trail a little ways and then found what he was looking for. "Way to go Sam" he chortled. Then he turned to Spike and said "Sam's leaving us a trail. I know it. They are headed up the ridge."

Both rushed back to the main group.

Jeff reported as he held out the fluff "Spike found this. I found another little bit further up the trail. Sam's letting us know which way he is headed. It is up the trail."

Blaze stated "Good job. But we are splitting into five units. We have enough manpower to cover all contingencies."

Leah chuckled and thought Blaze's slight was okay. There were twenty-six men and only one woman here. She listened to the plan.

Blaze explained "I will lead Alpha. With me will be the General and Russ as snipers. Drake, Mason, Spike and Wordy will come too. We will be heading up the ridge in the helo."

Looking at Winds, Blaze stated "Winds will lead Bravo with Jeff acting as trail guide to the top of the ridge. SRU snipers Mike F. and Jude will be with Bravo. Rollie, Derek and Jack you will go with them."

Derek interjected "What if we encounter Sam before you do? I don't have oxygen in my pack?"

Jeff responded "I have experience with Sam and breathing issues. We will manage until Drake arrives."

Derek looked at Sam's cousin and wondered exactly what type of experience he had with Sam and breathing issues. Perhaps he would ask along the way so he could better prepare.

Blaze continued and looked to Mike Galloway "Mike will lead Charlie with Scott as trail guide to the base of the ridge. The unit will only have Craig as a sniper but since we are fairly certain they headed up the ridge that should suffice. Phil, Leah, Daniel and Tyler will round out the unit."

Ed piped up and hid his extreme frustration at being injured and having to stay behind as he said "I'll lead Delta. Lance, Sean and Cameo will stay with me here to guard the vehicles in case the subjects manage to get by the other teams and try to get away."

Wordy patted Ed's back. He knew how hard it was for Ed to remain here. But Ed was in no shape to climb into the helo or to run the distance needed to get to the top or base of the ridge. Wordy was glad the rookies of Team One and Three were staying with him. Ed needed protection too seeing that the injured arm was his right one. Holding and firing a weapon would be difficult for him left handed.

Blaze finished saying "Echo is Zach and Mark. Mark will stay with the helo in case the targets manage to get there."

Ed corrected Blaze at this point "Subjects."

"Okay, your way. In case the subjects manage to get to the helo and think they can force Zach to fly them out."

Spike opened his pack and stated "I have GPS tags for everyone. Cameo will be monitoring everyone's location."

Cameo interjected "I'll be handling all radio communications too. Cell phones are out of range here. I've assigned a different channel to each unit. The radio signals are likely to get distorted given the terrain but I will set up the booster so you will be able to communicate with me if not the other units. Sorry, I can't do better than that."

Spike said "It is better than no communications."

Bravo and Charlie units tagged up first and then headed out double time. Then Alpha and Delta tagged up as Cameo brought the program up on the laptop.

The helo appeared overhead and the rappelling lines were dropped. Alpha unit made good time up the ropes. Soon Zach was flying at top speed to the landing area near the top of the ridge.

Mason's satellite phone rang and he answered it "Apollo?"

 _["No not Apollo. It's Jules. I have something important to tell you. This will sound weird but I need you to know. I had a dream" Jules stated quickly. She heard sounds of a helicopter in the background.]_

"Jules you are breaking up. I only heard a few words" Mason stated.

 _["Mason, what did you say?" Jules asked only hearing her name and then 'up' and 'few'. The rest was static.]_

Frustrated Mason tapped the phone. Damned thing was not working properly. He put it back to his ear and said "Repeat. Jules. Repeat."

 _[Jules paced as she heard mostly static but one word, her name. She said "Yawls is trying to help Sam. Do not shoot him. Do not shoot Yawls. You will send Yawls and Sam over the cliff. Did you get that?" Then all she heard was dead air. The call was dropped. She tried frantically to call back but it did not go through._

 _She then tried his cell phone and it went directly to voicemail. She tried the General, Blaze, Ed, Wordy, Spike and Leah but every one of them went to voice mail._

 _Jules continued paced and she growled in frustration. She hoped Mason heard her. She tried the satellite phone again. The call did not go through.]_

Mason stared at the General and said "Jules was trying to tell me something. All I heard was 'important to tell you, had a dream, help Sam, shoot Yawls, send Yawls over the cliff'."

Spike's knee bounced nervously hearing what Mason said. He offered "Jules and Sam are connected. Maybe she knows something. She told Greg about that dream she had, the one where she saw Sam hurt and in a cold place with chains. That was true. Sam was chained in that basement."

Wordy said "So Jules is saying we need to shoot Yawls?"

Mason shook his head "I don't know. I only heard bits and pieces before the call dropped."

Blaze said "We proceed as we would. Both Tocci and Yawls are the targets … um subjects. We do what is necessary to get Blondie to safety. If that includes shooting Yawls, so be it."

Everyone gave various signs of agreement and then each checked their weapons and prepared as best they could for what they might encounter.

* * *

 _ **Forty-One**_ _ **Hours Missing – Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan – Ridge**_

It was twilight when Melpomene, Yawls and Sam made it to the top of the ridge.

Melpomene sank onto the nearest rock shivering with cold. She looked at Yawls as he set Sam down near the edge. Yawls should have just tossed Sam over the edge she thought.

But she was so cold and she needed things before Yawls took care of Sam. Melpomene yelled "Give me your jacket then make a fire. There is no way we can make it back down the ridge tonight. The dark of night is almost upon us and I'm freezing."

Yawls placed an unconscious Sam on the ground and then covered him in leaves as his felt how cold Sam was. The leaves would offer a modicum of warmth. It was the best he could do for right now. Abner wanted to put his jacket over Sam because Sam's lips looked blue. But he couldn't do that yet because it would give away his plans.

He stood and turned to Plouffe who was sitting on a rock and yelling at him to start a fire. Abner needed to find a way to get Plouffe near the edge of the ridge to push him off. Then he could build a fire and try to keep Sam alive for the night.

.

* * *

 _ **AN:**_ _Next chapter the guys will get to Sam, but what will happen? What did Jules see in her dream that made her yell No? Will it happen as she saw it? Will the garbled message cause problems?_


	19. Fight for His Life on the Ridge

**Fight for His Life on the Ridge**

* * *

 _ **Forty-One and a Quarter**_ _ **Hours Missing – Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan – Running to Ridge**_

Zach landed the helicopter and the guys all piled out. William had conferred with Mark on the short flight which would be the best direction to head. Mark had indicated a portion of the ridge that overlooked the river.

It had made everyone a little sick to the stomach when Mark indicated that would be the best place to dispose of a body. The drop alone could kill and a person would be stunned if he hit the water alive. The fall or drowning would appear to be the cause of death. It would be hard to prove murder unless they shot Sam or someone witnessed them throwing him off the cliff.

William, Blaze, Spike, Wordy, Mason, Drake and Russ had set off at a flat out run for the location. The pace was grueling but each man felt a sense of urgency.

Russ was thoroughly impressed by his General. The man was as fit as ever at sixty-two years old. The General put to shame some of the younger soldiers Russ knew. They spent way too much time on video games and not enough on physical training. Russ just might tease them with this new knowledge and whip their butts into shape.

It was determined that once they located Sam they would split into three groups. Russ, Drake and Mason would swing wide and come in from the opposite direction. Blaze and Spike would take the center while William and Wordy would approach from the direction they approached. The net would be cast and they would have all bases covered.

Or at least that was the plan. The real world did not go as planned sometimes. But they all hoped this time it would.

In addition to the medic pack he was carrying on his back, Wordy gripped his MP5 and had taken the range finders that the General had given him. He would act as William's spotter. As he ran, Wordy was questioning what Jules had told Mason.

It wouldn't be like Jules to tell them to shoot someone. No matter what dream she had. Jules always looked for the non-violent solution. She was good at talk. So why would she tell them to shoot Yawls?

Wordy was running next to Spike and said "Jules wouldn't tell us to shoot Yawls. She would know we would only do that if it was the last resort."

Spike blew out a breath and responded "That's been bugging me too. Mason said he only heard parts. What if he missed the do not? But I'm trying to reason why she would call in the first place. It must have been some strong dream that made her call."

Mason was listening. The static had been terrible and he really only heard parts. He was aware of Jules' and Blondie's connection. It was uncanny how those two always seemed to know when the other was in trouble.

He spoke to Blaze "We need to go cautious and assess the situation before …"

Blaze interrupted "As I said Mason, we proceed as usual. No different than any other situation. We assess before action. We let Spike and Wordy do the SRU thing if at all possible. Not that I don't want to blow them away for hurting Blondie, but we are in country and they are not terrorists. Spike and Wordy need to take lead. This is a police matter not a military matter."

William listened to all and stated "Agreed."

Then William thought that he needed to up the time he spent doing physical training. These young guys were setting a pace he was struggling to keep. But he would dig deep and keep pace because Samuel's life was on the line. William was not going to let Plouffe win from the grave and kill his son via Yawls.

Wordy was puffing hard at this pace and looked at Spike. He got his breathing in order and then said "You negotiate. You've got more practice at it than me. I'm rusty having been out of SRU for a while."

Spike gave a curt nod. Internally he was thinking, oh crap. He wished he had the Boss in his ear or Jules. Hell even Ed would help. How did he approach this situation? Two clearly mentally ill people had taken his best friend and were bent on killing him. Crap!

* * *

 _ **Forty-One and a Quarter**_ _ **Hours Missing – Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan – Car Location**_

Ed paced a little ways from the two rookies and Cameo. It was killing him not to be up on the ridge. He hoped they were not too late. God damned rotten support post.

Mason had apologized. Ed had laughed and assured Mason no one could have ever imagined one punch would bring a house down. He also told Mason not to worry about it. The injury was minor.

It was relatively minor but it was still keeping him from where he wanted to be. Ed knew he could not pull a 'Sam' and head into danger while injured or Ed would have a snowball's chance of staying frozen in the fires of hell of ever getting Sam to change his risk assessment criteria.

So he was here and hating every last second of it. He had kept back the two rookies because he knew on the off chance that the subjects backtracked that he would need assistance. He could not put the full weight of that on Cameo. It would be too risky for one man, even if he was a JTF2 soldier. It was better to have backup.

He could use this as an illustration to educate Sam in the future.

Ed stopped and sighed, if Sam had a future. They were doing all they could to fight for Sam's life. Louise's comments about Sam's breathing worried Ed greatly. God what would this do to Jules if Sam didn't make it? It would tear her world to pieces.

All he had to do was look back on when Spike and Sam were taken by Vlad. Jules had been so fragile then. Damn, he had completely misread the signs back then. Instead of a frantic, distraught woman worried about her lover, Ed had seen an exhausted teammate feeling anxious about fate of two friends. He had been so blind to the fact that Sam and Jules were breaking the rules again and dating.

Maybe it was because they never let it affect their performance. But then again, perhaps it was because he was more focused on his own personal life at that time. Sophie's ultimatum to him, which was her or the team, and then her acquiescence with compromises, had consumed him. It was for the better though.

Things were better than ever with Sophie. He had made a change in his life and was happier for it. No less dedicated to his job but now more dedicated as a husband and father. He had more balance.

As he thought more about it, Ed had to admit that Sam and Jules never let their personal lives interfere with work. They were professional all the way and followed protocol. Ed was still not sure he could ever make the calls that Sam and Jules did if it were Sophie.

When Jules asked Sam if he was her husband or teammate when Jules wanted to crawl into that debris to save the kids at the daycare, well Ed knew he would have said husband and forbid Sophie if it were him. But Sam let Jules be Jules even though she was three months pregnant and Sam's world could have been shattered if the rubble had done more than just cause rebar to injure Jules' leg that day.

And then Jules, hell all of them, thinking that Sam had not made it away from that bomb and had been blown to bits. How the hell those two did that on a daily basis was beyond Ed. However, Ed was glad when the Chief had allowed them to remain on Team One and date. That was the right decision. Sam and Jules had earned it in so many ways.

Sean was leaning on one of the SUV's as Lance paced a bit. "Hey chill" he said as he saw Lance's irritation grow, it was feeding his irritation and that needed to stop.

Lance stopped and said with disappointment lacing his words "Why are we here? We should have gone. Waiting here is a waste of time."

Frustration continued to build in Sean too at Lance's words stating exactly what he was feeling. But he chose to say "Probably a rookie thing. We haven't proved ourselves yet."

Then the frustration of not being in the action and stuck here to babysit vehicles bubbled out as Sean added "But this definitely blows."

Cameo looked up from his laptop and noticed Ed was far enough away that he did not hear the two rookies. Lance and Sean sounded a little bit like Apollo had sounded when they were rookies. Apollo's brashness had caused significant damage. Cameo rubbed his leg as he recalled all the physical therapy he had to endure due to Apollo's eagerness.

He had forgiven Apollo long ago. Apollo had done a fantastic job helping him rehab. He knew that Apollo still volunteered at the PT department when his unit was on down time. Cameo decided he needed to say something to the rookies.

Cameo stood up and walked over so he could keep his voice low. He said "Lance, Sean cool it."

Lance said "I should be up there helping. My god, it is my friend's girlfriend that is involved in this. I need to make it right."

Cameo ran his hand over the back of his neck and said "Lance that is one reason you are here. Don't you see that if Melpomene saw you it could be like adding gasoline to a fire? Things could get out of hand very quickly."

"I'm not sure what the guys will run into but they don't need anything that might set her off. Hell, she might even take a shot at you if she has a gun. You said she hated you. You got the spot that both you and Joseph were trying out for. Her warped mind could very easily turn you into her target."

Lance deflated a bit as he sagged against the SUV "I didn't think of that. I wouldn't want to be a source of more trouble for Sam and I sure as hell don't want that bitch targeting me."

Sean inclined his head and said "I get what you are saying about why Lance was held back but not me. I don't know her and I'm on Team One not Team Three. Why the hell am I here?"

Cameo shook his head and asked "So you think here is not important?"

"No it's not. It's not where the action is" Sean responded.

"So, let me ask you another question. What do you think might happen if, and that is a big if, but in the realm of possibility, if Melpomene and Yawls slipped past the guys and made it back here?" Cameo asked.

Sean looked around. Then he answered "Ed, you and Lance could take care of it."

Cameo sighed "What if I'm busy with a radio call. You think Lance could handle it by himself?"

"But he wouldn't. Ed is here too" Sean stated.

"Have you looked at Ed? I mean really looked?" Cameo asked.

Sean turned and looked at his Sarge. He noted the arm in the sling. Then he looked at Ed's face. It was drawn in pain and fatigue. His Sarge had barely slept in two days.

He had seen him refuse the narcotic pain pills, saying he needed a clear head. Ed had taken a couple of over the counter pills instead. But that was probably like trying to hold back rushing water with a chain link fence. Not very effective.

Then it hit Sean why he was really held back. Ed was right handed. Ah crap, he had been an ass and not considered the danger Ed could be in injured as he was.

Sean turned back to Cameo and said quietly "Thanks Cameo. I get it now. Ed is always larger than life. I didn't stop to consider that he might not be up to this. He's right handed. I've seen him fire left handed once. Not bad but not great. Ed needs someone to keep him safe if the subjects manage to return here."

Cameo gave them both a slight grin and said "And to think you learned without taking rash action. Good thing SRU sure holds value in words. Apollo could've benefited from some SRU training. Might've changed a few things for several people. But then again, if Apollo had then he wouldn't have discovered his post JTF2 career."

He turned and walked back to his laptop leaving them with the vagueness of his words. Cameo then checked the positions of all the units as he absently rubbed at his leg. He saw Alpha unit was very nearly to the ridge. Bravo and Charlie were making excellent time too.

Lance looked at Sean and asked "What do you think Cameo meant by that last bit?"

Sean shrugged and said "Before our time I think."

Then both took a more active posture and began surveying the area and keeping a better watch in case the highly unlikely scenario occurred. Neither of them wanted for Ed to get hurt nor to allow the subjects to get away.

Ed stopped pacing and looked at the rookies. Something had changed in their demeanor. He had meant to explain to them that this was as important a job as the rest of the teams. But he could clearly see he did not need too. Their body language now indicated they understood. So Ed headed over to Cameo to check the progress of the teams.

* * *

 _ **Forty-One and a Quarter**_ _ **Hours Missing – General Braddock's Home**_

As Jules paced the rest of Mason's unit entered the library and Pawn asked Apollo quietly "What's up?"

Apollo said "Jules tried to contact Mason. The satellite phone was on the fritz. She only heard the helo in the background and a few words Mason said. The call got dropped and no one's cell phone is working. Must be out of range of a cell tower."

Pawn looked at Jules wondering what was so important that she was wound up tighter than a two dollar watch. Whatever it was, he wanted to help. He suggested "Have you tried radioing Zach in the helicopter."

Smacking his head hard with the palm of his hand Apollo said "Why didn't I think of that?"

He pulled out his phone and called into the radio center at the base. They patched him into Zach's frequency. After a quick intro he handed the phone to Jules.

Jules took the phone and gave Apollo a pat on the shoulder and Pawn a smile. Then she turned and said "Zach. This is important. Are the guys still with you?"

 _[Zach responded "No they headed out a few minutes ago. What is so important Jules?"]_

Pacing Jules said "You need to get to them. Tell them not to shoot Yawls. He is helping Sam. It is Melpomene that is pulling all the strings. Sam has somehow swayed Yawls. Yawls his not going to toss Sam off the cliff. He is helping him."

"Yawls is the only reason Sam is still alive. If they shoot Yawls, both Sam and Yawls will fall off the cliff. Did you get that? Can you relay the message to them? Do not shoot Yawls. Sam will die" Jules said with urgency.

 _[Zach was undoing his harness as Jules spoke and giving his uncle a look that conveyed it was serious. He answered "I'll run like the wind Jules. I got it. Do not shoot Yawls or Sam dies."_

 _Then Zach shoved the radio mic into his uncle's hand and said "Relay to Cameo so he can relay it to Blaze. I'm running in case it does not get through."_

 _Mark took the mic and said "Jules I need to change channels to contact Cameo and relay the message. I'll be back with you in a moment. Zach is the fastest sprinter I know. He might reach them in time."]_

Jules paced while she waited. She looked at Sadie who was still sleeping soundly without a care in the world, as it should be Jules thought. Then Jules sent a silent plea to the powers that be that Sadie did not have to grow up fatherless. That would be a real tragedy.

Several minutes later Mark came back on the line. Jules explained the dream to him when he asked why she didn't want them to shoot Yawls. Jules was glad that they had simply relayed her message without questioning her in the first place.

 _[Mark exhaled heavily and said "Jules that is some dream. I hope that is all it is. There is a hospital only a short flight from here. If Sam is as bad as you think it is likely that he will be treated there until he is stabilized."]_

With strong resolve Jules stated "I need to be there if that happens. Make that happen for me please. Sadie and I need to be there for Sam. He is so close to the end of his endurance. His breathing was so shallow. Very much like when his lungs were damaged."

 _["I'll make it happen. Once Sam is at the hospital Zach will likely be flying Blaze and Wordy home" Mark stated.]_

"Why? What happened?" Jules asked as worry notched up for Wordy and Blaze. Had they been injured?

 _[Hearing the note of concern in Jules' voice Mark calmly assured her "Both are okay. It's just that both Lizzy and Shelley went to the hospital in labor. So we want to get them home as soon as possible once we get Sam."]_

Jules stopped "Oh my. That's happy news but terrible the guys are away. I'm going to call and check the status on Shel and Lizzy. When you let me know how Sam is I can update Wordy and Blaze on their wives."

 _["I'm sure that they would appreciate that Jules. Now you take care of you and Sadie. We will get Sam. We will" Mark stated then signed off._

 _Mark knew they would get Sam. He just didn't know what state he would be in. From what Jules dreamed, it didn't sound like Sam had much longer. Mark sent up a silent prayer that his nephew was saved. Then he added that Blaze and Wordy would be home in time for the birth of their children.]_

Hanging up, Jules first called Sophie.

* * *

 _ **Forty-One and a Half**_ _ **Hours Missing – Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan – Ridge**_

Yawls had caved and made a fire for Plouffe. Damn him. He had even given up his jacket as he tried to get Plouffe to come closer to the edge. But Plouffe would not move from the fire.

He needed to find a way to get him to the edge of the ridge or to drop the damned gun. His knife was no use against a gun. He was never any good at throwing a knife. His unit mates had teased him about that.

Yawls paced back and forth. He kept checking on Sam. It was getting colder since the sun set. The light was nearly gone. Could he pick up Sam and put him near the fire? How would Plouffe react to that?

He stopped a moment and looked down. Sam looked mostly dead now. Sam would not make it to morning if he did not get him warm. Hell, Abner didn't think Sam would make it to morning given the way he was breathing and shivering but Abner had to try.

Pacing back towards the fire he looked at Plouffe. God damned bastard was eating his pistachios. Mom sent those especially for him. He should have taken those out of his jacket pocket before handing it over.

Damned Plouffe! Abner hated that son of a bitch. He wished his aim was better and killed the SOB in Colonel Sutton's office.

He glowered at Plouffe as he watched him eat all the pistachios his mom sent him and thought I hope you choke and die on them you SOB.

Melpomene sat by the fire. She was freezing and starving. She had found a bag of nuts in the pocket of Yawls' jacket and helped herself to them. There wasn't enough to share and she was very hungry, so she decided to eat them all.

The fire was very small and she needed Yawls to go find more firewood. She didn't believe him that all the wood was wet. Wood was wood and all wood burned. He was just being difficult and trying to make her life miserable.

She munched on the pistachios and then rubbed at the bee sting on her neck. She was feeling decidedly itchy down below and started to move back and forth on the rock where she sat to scratch her bum. She couldn't scratch the other place in front of Yawls but it itched like crazy too.

But she was not about to go into the dark woods. There might be animals out there. Melpomene had enough of animals today. She still smelled of skunk.

Melpomene rubbed her hands which were feeling itchy now too. Damn bee stings. Damned nature!

She could not wait to get to a spa and get her nails fixed and hair done. She would have to buy some new perfume after having to smell skunk for so long.

Melpomene glared to where Yawls had set Sam down. This was all his fault. If he had not taken Joseph's place on the SRU team then none of this would have happened. None of it!

Downing the last handful of pistachios she wished she had something else to eat. She started thinking of that little breakfast café in Saguenay. She would have to stop there again and have more of that blackberry jam. Melpomene loved fruit.

Yeah, that is what she would do. Drive back to Saguenay, go to that spa, go shopping for new clothes and then have lunch at that café. That is after she made Yawls toss Sam off the cliff. Hell, if she didn't need Yawls to get back to the car she would push him off too. After this he would end his usefulness.

Melpomene began to think of how she could rid herself of Yawls. Perhaps she could stage it to look like she had been taken captive too. She could say that she was able to kill Yawls after he killed Sam and then she got away.

She smiled at her ability to think on her feet. She would come out of this smelling like a rose. She could tell them she tried to save Sam's life but that Yawls was just too far gone. No one would suspect a thing.

Then she would retire. Hell, she might even be able to swing a disability paycheck out of it. It would be a workplace trauma. One of her wards would be responsible for blackmailing her into doing all of this. Yawls threatened to kill Sam unless she complied.

Oh that was good. She would get so much sympathy and people would be falling over themselves to take care of her.

She could even play the poor victim with Jules. She could go to Sam's funeral and watch that woman cry her eyes out for her worthless husband. That little brat Sadie was better off without a father anyways.

Melpomene shivered in her wet clothes as she thought that she did not have a father and she turned out just fine. Hell, she was better than fine.

* * *

 _ **Forty-One and a Half**_ _ **Hours Missing – Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan – Ridge**_

Alpha unit had run at a steady pace and Mason had picked up a trail of fresh tracks that the rain had not washed away. They had slowed their pace as they came nearer the ridge. Mostly because they had no idea how far ahead the subjects were and they needed to switch to stealth mode to approach.

The worst thing they could do would be to go crashing in and startle Tocci and Yawls. They had no idea if they were armed. When Alpha unit saw a fire near the ridge right where Mark had suggested they stopped.

As they huddled close, Drake dropped his medic pack and moved in to try and determine locations of Tocci, Yawls and Sam. He was selected by Blaze because he knew from Mike that Drake had stealth down better than even Blondie ever did.

Drake moved out and within a few moments none of the men could see or hear Drake. William and Blaze drew a quick map in the mud to point out tentative locations they would each take grouped as planned before.

None of them heard Drake as he reappeared. Spike nearly jumped a foot when Drake landed his hand on Spike's back.

Spike whispered "Damn, Sam was right you are silent. Almost gave me a friggin heart-attack."

Drake grinned briefly then looked at the map and quickly marked on it as he whispered "Tocci is sitting at the fire. She appears to have a gun. Yawls was pacing here." He pointed to a spot between the fire and the ridge. Then he said "I could not see Sam. But there are some rocks near the edge that he could be positioned near."

He did not say, nor did anyone else voice that perhaps they had already thrown Sam off the ridge.

Blaze radioed to Cameo in a hushed voice that they had located Tocci and Yawls but had no visual on Blondie.

After a quick comms check and a short whispered confirmation of locations for the groups William and Wordy headed out to the south to find a sniper perch. Russ, Mason and Drake, who had put his medic pack back on, headed the wide way around to find a sniper perch to the north. Blaze and Spike quietly moved forward seeing they were already in the center.

Blaze used hand signals to indicate he was going to belly crawl forward to see if he could hear any conversation. Then he proceeded to move forward slowly. He got close enough to see that Tocci and Yawls were not conversing. He also saw that Tocci looked horrible. Nothing like the pictures he had seen.

He questioned if Melpomene was really the one in charge. It looked like she was dragged through the mud and had a fight with swelling on her neck and hand. Did Yawls hit her? It was hard to tell with almost no light left. Blaze started to make his way back to Spike. He would need to cover Spike as he negotiated.

Spike remained crouched where he was and watched Yawls pace back and forth between the fire and a cropping of rocks near the cliff. It looked to him like Yawls kept looking at something near the rocks. Could that be where Sam was?

When Blaze rejoined him Spike whispered "Alpha one in position."

William and Wordy made their way to a crop of rocks that afforded them protection and gave them a clear view of Tocci but not of Yawls. William set up his rifle and then pulled out his night vision scope and switched it out. The light was diminishing quickly and he needed the night vision scope to be accurate.

Wordy pulled out the night vision range finders and surveyed the area. He wished they had a better view of Yawls. They were close but the rocks obscured him as he paced near the ridge.

When they were all set Wordy whispered "Alpha two in position. Solution for Tocci, no joy on Yawls."

Mason, Drake and Russ had moved wide and came closer. They heard that the General had a bead on Tocci but not for Yawls. They moved until they found a location that afforded them a view of Yawls. But unfortunately it was less than adequate for Tocci. Russ had a shot but it was not stellar and if she moved too much he would lose the shot.

Once Russ set up his night vision scope and zeroed in on Yawls he gave Mason the sign he was ready. Drake dropped his medic pack and grabbed the range finders and whispered out the conditions to Russ.

Mason reported in "Alpha three in position. Solution for Yawls, partial joy for Tocci."

With Alpha unit all in position Spike looked to Blaze. He took a deep steadying breath as he prepared to initiate negotiations. He stood and Blaze stood with him covering him. Spike was about to call out when he saw Yawls bend down by the rocks at the edge of the ridge.

Spike paused and nudged Blaze whose eyes were on Tocci. Spike pointed and Blaze's eyes shifted to Yawls.

Blaze whispered "What the hell is Yawls doing?"

Spike shook his head but responded in a hushed tone "You think Sam might be there?"

"Possible. Let's wait one moment and see" Blaze stated.

They both watched as Yawls bent down.

Yawls looked at Sam and made a decision. Sam would not make it to morning unless he was warmed up. Abner had to risk moving him to the fire.

Abner bent down and brushed the leaves off Sam so he could lift Sam and carry him to the fire. He noticed Sam's eyes opened. He was about to tell him that he was moving him to the fire to get warm when Plouffe shouted at him.

Melpomene wondered just what the hell Yawls was doing. She yelled in a snarling tone "Will you just toss Sam over the cliff and be done with it. We can check in the morning to see where his body lands if he doesn't hit the river. You need to come over here and build the fire up. I'm freezing."

When Yawls didn't do as she said Mel screeched "God dammit, do I have to come over there and do it for you. Are you that much of yellow-bellied yokel that you cannot stomach tossing Sam off the cliff? Do I have to do every god damned thing?"

"I swear if this was left up to you, you would still be sitting in your room all withdrawn over the fact that Plouffe raped you. Yeah, I heard you cry in your sleep and tell him no, you are not going to fuck him. But you did and he fucked you too. Often didn't he? I bet you liked it" Melpomene sneered.

She continued in a sneering, mocking tone "I'm sick of all your sniveling ways. You will never be a real man until you kill the enemy of your enemy. You will always be worthless like most men until you kill Sam. Do it now or I will kill you and do it myself."

Yawls began muttering "Enemy of my enemy is my enemy."

Sam looked at Yawls. Shit he was in trouble. Melpomene had swayed Yawls back. She knew about the rape from Yawls nightmares and used that against him.

Abner reached out and tried to pick up Sam. He hated Plouffe with everything in him but Sam needed warmth. He had to help Sam first then he could kill Plouffe.

Trying to get away Sam rolled but doing so he ran smack dab into the rock he did not know was behind him. Pain seared through his body as his rib hit the rock. Sam hissed in pain as he tried to fight off Yawls.

Sam had a little bit of strength but not much and it was waning quickly. Too quickly. He was a dead man if he did not succeed. Sam would not go quietly though as he growled through the pain.

He would fight to the very last. Sam wanted to survive for Jules and Sadie.

Yawls could not believe the strength in Sam. Why was he fighting him? Then it clicked.

His hands were nearly around Yawls' throat as Sam heard Yawls whisper "Relax, quit fighting me. I'm not gonna toss you over the cliff. You need warmth Sam. I'm moving you to the fire so you don't freeze to death."

Sam went limp at those words, all the fight gone, not that he had much to begin with and there was absolutely nothing left. Sam blacked out.

Yawls started to pick up Sam.

Alpha unit had all become aware that Yawls was struggling with someone when they heard the low feral growl and Yawls thrashing around. That someone could only be Sam.

Blaze said softly "Shit, Blondie is fighting for his life. Russ you have the shot?"

Russ responded in a hushed tone "Not clear. I'll hit Sam. They are moving too much."

William called out quietly "No joy."

Spike directed in a low urgent voice not wanting to give away their advantage of stealth yet "Scorpio, take the shot if you get it. We can't let him throw Sam off the cliff."

Mason and Wordy began moving in. So far, neither Tocci nor Yawls had detected the unit. The almost complete darkness was in their favor to sneak up on Yawls.

Wordy thought that if he and Mason could get close to Yawls without him seeing they could stop Yawls from killing Sam.

Melpomene was pissed off now and she stood up as she shrieked "Dammit just throw him over already and get more wood for the fire. I'm freezing. Christ! Do I have to do everything myself?" She held the gun down at her side.

Yawls stood with a limp Sam in his arms.

Russ took aim at Yawls. It was not clear yet. Yawls needed to turn just a bit then he would have a clear shot without possibility of hitting Sam. It did not need to be a kill shot; just one that would get Yawls to drop Sam.

Drake called out quietly "Mason and Wordy are so close to them now. Russ, take the shot when you can."

The following occurred in only a few seconds.

Yawls turned towards the fire with Sam in his arms and yelled "Shut the fuck up Plouffe. I swear I'm going to kill you, you perverted bastard. You are done hurting innocents."

Melpomene's eyes widened. Yawls just called her Plouffe. Oh crap, he was delusional and was seeing her as his target of hate. She began to raise the gun at Yawls.

By the firelight, Yawls saw the gun start to rise towards him. Abner started to turn back towards the cliff to protect Sam from a bullet.

Seeing Yawls turn to the cliff and thinking that he was about to throw Sam off, Spike yelled "SRU, freeze where you are."

William aimed at Tocci as he saw the gun coming up.

Russ adjusted his aim on Yawls and fired just as Zach burst into the area next to Spike and yelled "Do not shoot Yawls. He is helping Sam!"

Melpomene turned her gun towards Blaze, Spike and Zach. William took the shot and Melpomene screamed as the gun dropped from her hand and she fell to the ground.

Burning pain lanced through Yawls' shoulder and he staggered forward towards the cliff. He could not regain his balance and Abner and Sam started to fall forward off the cliff.

Blaze and Spike knew they would never reach Sam in time so they raced to secure Melpomene before she could grab the gun.

Wordy and Mason raced forward from their advanced positions. They both reached out for Yawls. Their hands met empty air as Yawls and Sam pitched over the edge of the ridge.

Melpomene laughed manically.

Zach, William, Spike, Mason, Wordy and Blaze all screamed in unison "Nooooooooooo."

.

* * *

 _ **AN:**_ _I'm ducking all the tomatoes you at throwing at me for this cliff hanger, literally cliff-hanger. Blame my muse, she made me do it. Writing next chapter right now so fingers crossed will be posted sometime tomorrow._


	20. Anger-Grief-Shock, Hold On & Ropes, NOW!

**Anger-Grief-Shock, Hold On & Ropes, NOW!**

* * *

 _ **Found and Lost**_ _ **– Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan – Top of the Ridge**_

Mason and Wordy had both turned their backs on the cliff. Neither could bear to look over the edge. It was too dark to see all the way to the bottom but the thought of seeing his body lying at the base of the ridge caused both men to shake with anger and grief.

Wordy looked at Spike who was illuminated by the firelight. Spike's face reflected the same disbelief and pain Wordy felt. Wordy's heart broke for Jules and Sadie. Sam's death would scar all of them.

He vowed at this moment that he would keep Sam's memory alive for Sadie. He would be there for Jules as she tried to accept Sam was gone. Wordy felt unsteady and his legs wanted to buckle under the weight of it all. If only he had been one step closer. Just one.

Spike stared at the cliff not believing what he had seen. Wordy and Mason had been so close. Spike dropped to his knees and his head dropped to his hands covering his face. Not again. Not again. Lou and now Sam. Spike wanted to scream but all that came out was a small sob.

Mason's eyes turned to Blaze. Blondie was gone. He was so close yet so far away. Mason wanted to crumble in a heap like Spike. He saw that Blaze looked like he had been struck with a two-by-four. The firelight showed a man whose face was dazed.

As Mason stared at Blaze, he wondered how the hell could he miss grabbing onto Yawls? Quiet tears began to slip down Mason's face as he continue to stare at Blaze and his mind kept repeating, I'm sorry Blondie. He didn't bother to wipe the tears away.

Blaze could not breathe. Air would not enter his lungs. He had forgotten how they worked. Blondie, the man he thought of as a son, was gone. After everything Blondie had survived and all the good that was now in his life, Blondie died a senseless death all because of one narcissistic bitch.

In an uncharacteristic move, Blaze unholstered his gun and placed it against Tocci's temple. He growled in a voice that was low and savage "I should put a bullet in your brain you bitch."

Melpomene quit laughing and stared at the man with the gun to her head. He looked like he just might pull the trigger. She peed her pants. It burned and caused excessive itching but she dared not move.

Zach was still blinking. He had run faster than he had ever run but he was still too late. He was a fraction of a second too late. Watching Sam go over the cliff he would never get out of his head. His eyes teared up as he pursed his lips together trying not to cry out.

How could he ever face Aunt Yvonne? He was not fast enough to save Sam. His eyes turned to Uncle Will. He was silently begging for forgiveness as he watched his uncle stand like a statue staring at where Sam went over.

William stood stock still. He did not believe his eyes. He was in shock. He had just watched his son fall to his death. Samuel was gone. Plouffe had won.

Drake turned to Russ. The man was white as a sheet and shaking like a leaf. Drake reached out and helped Russ sit down before he collapsed.

Russ allowed Drake to sit him down. It was a good thing because he was about to fall down. His shot. His shot. Oh god, his shot had caused Sam and Yawls to fall over the cliff. He killed Sam.

Drake pushed Russ' head between his knees as Russ began to hyperventilate. His med pack would be needed but for a very different reason. He heard Russ gulping deep breaths of air, the tell-tale sign that Russ was trying to ward of puking. Drake felt like puking too.

But Drake did not have time to do that. He stood with a heavy heart and began to make his way to the General, who was likely going into shock after seeing his son go over the cliff to certain death.

As Drake made his way to the General, he saw Blaze put the gun to the temple of Melpomene. Shoot the bitch he thought and continued to the General who was standing stock still and clearly as pale as the moon. He would corroborate that she was trying to get away or something if Blaze actually killed the bitch.

Bravo unit consisting of Winds, Jeff, Rollie, Mike, Jack, Derek and Jude raced into the area after hearing two shots. They had all raced to the location faster than ever. They came to a halt and saw the immobile shocked men of Alpha unit and one bedraggled ugly woman.

Winds saw Blaze with the gun to Melpomene's head. He quickly went to him. He saw murderous intent in Blaze's eyes. He had not seen that since they had taken out the terrorists that had tortured Blondie.

He reached out and gently placed one hand on Blaze's shoulder and the other over the gun. As Winds pushed the gun down he asked "Where is Blondie?"

Blaze's throat was closed so tight with grief he only looked towards the cliff.

Winds sucked in a breath. No. They were too late.

Jude went to Spike and placed a hand on his back. The scene was easy to read. Everyone was in shock which meant only one thing. Sam was dead.

Jeff took one look at the tears tracing down Zach's face and a quick glance at Uncle Will. Anger welled up in him. No! No! Sam did not die like this. NO! Jeff would not accept it.

He started for the cliff. He would never accept it without seeing it with his own eyes as hard as that would be. Not Sam. Sam beat the odds. No he was not dead, repeated over and over in Jeff's head.

Rollie headed to Wordy who looked a little unsteady on his feet. Inside Rollie was reeling. One day. Only one day on Team Three. Life certainly was not fair to Sam. Hell is was unfair to Jules and Sadie too.

William threw his head back and looked at the stars glittering in the full night sky. He roared out with intense pain and grief as his knees hit the ground "Samuel."

* * *

 _ **Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan – Over the Ridge**_

Sam had blacked out when Yawls picked him up as his rib shifted and the pain spiked. He had just regained consciousness when he felt Yawls jerk as he turned. Sam's face was sprayed with something wet. Sam assumed it was blood given the report of a gun.

Then they were falling. His eyes briefly met Yawls' eyes as they went over the cliff. Both were in shock that Melpomene had actually shot Yawls. She took two shots but Sam thought only one hit because Yawls did not jerk a second time.

Reaching out blindly as he fell, Sam's hand brushed on something rough and prickly. He latched on with everything he had left. His body jerked hard as downward momentum stopped. The pain lanced white hot through him and he opened his mouth to scream but the pain was so intense not a single sound emitted.

Sam felt heavier than he was. His biceps quivered as he struggled to hold on. Sam glanced down.

Yawls glanced up. His grip on the waist of Sam's jeans was the difference between life and death. He saw Sam's hold on the bush that was sticking out of the cliff. It was precarious at best.

He looked around quickly to see if there was another bush or rock he could grab. There was nothing, not a damned thing. Abner's eyes met Sam's in the darkness. There was just enough light to see one another.

"I'm sorry" Abner said quietly as the reality that they would both be dead soon hit him.

Abner knew there was no way Sam could hang on much longer and there was no way he could reach to where the bush was. They would continue their descent once Sam's strength gave out.

Sam tried to speak as he saw the regret in Abner's eyes. He could hardly breathe and he had no idea how he was still able to hold on. Every muscle in him was quivering in effort to hang on.

He turned his head up to the cliff. They had not fallen far. But it might as well be a hundred feet Sam thought. He had no strength to pull them up and even if he did there was nothing but this single bush he had grabbed.

Knowing he was going to die once the last of his strength gave out, Sam threw his head back and looked at the stars just beginning to show in the night sky.

His eyes landed on the one he had picked out for Sadie. His heart broke. He would not get to see her grow up.

Sam sent up a silent plea for mercy. He asked Matt to watch over Sadie and Jules for him.

His grip was loosening as he thought of Jules, the love of his life. Jules was his soul mate, the one woman who he loved with his entire heart and soul and who loved him completely in return. She accepted him flaws and all.

Sam knew that his death was going to hurt her so deeply and he felt the ripping and shredding of his heart for the pain that would cause her. He never wanted to hurt her like this. Sam wanted to grow old with Jules and have wheelchair races in the old folks' home.

He found the star he had picked out years ago for Jules. His grip loosened a bit more. It wouldn't be long now.

Sam breathed in deep doing his best to ignore the searing pain in his chest. Then he roared "Jules."

* * *

 _ **Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan – Top of the Ridge**_

The General's roar of Samuel rent the air but it was overridden by a roar of Jules.

It only took a split second for it to register in all the men's mind that it was Sam, Blondie, Samuel.

Spike bolted to his feet as he yelled "SAMTASTIC!" as he raced for the edge of the cliff.

Mason and Wordy were the closest and they flattened themselves on the ridge and peered over.

Wordy yelled "Sam hang on" as Mason yelled "Ropes, NOW!"

Blaze had his pack off in a flash and whipped out a rope at the same time as Jeff reached the edge of the cliff. He was followed next by William.

* * *

 _ **Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan – Over the Ridge**_

Sam could not believe what he heard. First he heard his dad yell his name. Then Wordy was telling him to hang on. Mason was calling for ropes.

Yawls called out "We are down here. Sam cannot hang on much longer. HURRY!"

Sam felt his hands loosen a bit more. They slipped a little as he lost hold on the bush and his hand moved. Could he hang on until they reached him?

He wheezed out quietly, between hard won breaths "Mattie … please … help me … hang on … don't … let go … of me … you … promised … to never … let me … fall."

Abner asked "Who the heck are you talking too?"

Sam smiled as he felt pressure on his hands increasing their grip on the bush. He also felt lighter as if a weight had been lifted. Sam ignored Abner and said "Thanks … Mattie … not … so … scared … of flying … with your … own … wings … huh."

 _Matt held onto Sam's hand like he had been doing since he had guided his hands to the bush. He smiled as he looked at all the guardian angels that were keeping Sam from falling. Every single one of them was flapping their wings furiously and using their ethereal powers to keep him aloft._

 _Yankee looked to Matt and asked "You are afraid of flying?"_

 _Chuckling Matt said "Not anymore."_

 _Lou looked wistful and said "I wish Spike knew I was his guardian angel like Sam knows you are his."_

 _Matt nodded "That was certainly unique that Sam saw me. The veil is not supposed to open like that. But I'm glad it did and I'm glad that Lady Wilhemina's blessing helped heal his heart and soul."_

 _Barrattiel was glad for that too. Sam deserved to heal. But he stated as he beat his wings helping to lift Yawls "Not so unique. Louise can see through the veil and interact with her brother Sammy. That happens with young children sometimes. That's why people think little kids have imaginary friends. It's how Allie was able to connect with Sam that first Christmas he was with SRU. Allie listened to her guardian angel when she told her to go to Sam because Sam needed her."_

Yawls thought that Sam was nuts. He was talking to someone that was not there. Who the hell was Matt?

His thoughts were interrupted as he felt lighter and it almost felt as if there was a breeze and hands holding him up. He then saw a golden glow emanating from Sam's chest where his heart was located. Now that was downright weird Yawls thought.

Then seven ropes slapped the cliff near them.

Yawls looked up and saw five men descending quickly. Holy shit, they sent the whole damned Army and police force after him.

Blaze, Wordy, Rollie, Zach, and Jeff descended the cliff. The ropes on the top of the cliff were held by Mason, Winds, Spike, Mike and Russ.

Wordy reached out and grabbed ahold of Sam's wrists and said "Not letting go but this time no Celtic wedding vows. Shel would not take lightly too me two timing her again."

Rollie and Jeff grabbed ahold of Yawls as Zach attached a rope to him. Then they had him release his hold on Sam's jeans.

Blaze wrapped the rope around Blondie's chest. Sam hissed in pain as he cinched it tight. Blaze asked "Ribs?"

Sam only nodded unable to speak as pain washed through him. He began to slip unconscious.

Blaze barked out "Blondie stay with me. That's an order."

Blinking his eyes Sam tried to get enough air in to comply. It was futile and Sam's head lolled to the side as his eyes rolled back, his lids closed and his body went limp as darkness claimed him.

Blaze yelled "Pull us up NOW! Blondie can't breathe" as he wrapped one arm gently around Blondie's waist.

Wordy released one wrist and wrapped an arm around Sam's waist on the other side. Blaze and Wordy held Sam close so he did not hit the rocks as they ascended as the guys up top pulled them up the cliff.

* * *

 _ **Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan – Top of the Ridge**_

Blaze, Wordy and Sam were the first up. Drake and Derek had prepared for Sam opening the med packs and pulling out what they would need.

William and Mike lifted Sam from Blaze and Wordy. They quickly carried him to the fire which had been built into a properly contained roaring bonfire by Jack so that Drake and Derek would be able to see to treat Sam.

Jude watched from his position holding Tocci at gunpoint so she did not try anything. He gasped when he saw Sam. Sweet mother of Jesus he was beat up.

The first thing Drake did was check Sam's airway and finding it clear he put the oxygen mask over Sam's nose and mouth and set it to a high flow. The breaths were so very shallow. Drake put his stethoscope in his ears and listened to Sam's lungs. They were very congested and the air movement was minimal and was accompanied with a rattling. Sam was in bad shape.

Derek began to prep for an IV. He looked at Drake and asked "Okay to use needles now?"

"He's out, so yes. Make it quick though in case he regains consciousness" Drake replied.

William knelt by his son and held one of his hands. He had seen Sam in worse shape. But this was always hard to see. He whispered "Hold on son. I'm here. We got you. You are going to make it son."

Melpomene screeched "I'm bleeding here. You should take care of me first. I'm bleeding and I'm a woman. That worthless idiot can wait."

Pushed beyond all semblance of rational thought William backhanded the woman across the face then said "Shut the hell up you worthless bitch. Be happy you are alive. I could have put the bullet between your eyes, still can."

His tone ice cold William continued "Better yet it would be all too easy and satisfying to slowly crush your windpipe and watch you struggle to breathe like my son is struggling. Not a man here would blink an eye or stop me. No one would ever find your body. You messed with the wrong man. No one hurts my son without paying dearly for doing so."

The guys all stared for a moment at the General. Whoa! Never had they seen him lose his cool like that. Never had they seen him strike a woman much less yell at a woman using profanity. But most were in agreement with what he said.

William continued to glare at the woman who was responsible for all of this. She had used Yawls. She took advantage of a man that had a tenuous grasp on reality. All so she could … ah hell, she wasn't worth his time. William turned back to his son and gently squeezed Samuel's hand to let him know on a subconscious level he was not alone.

Melpomene curled into herself at the murderous look in the man's eyes. She glanced down at his hands which were currently clenched in tight fists. She thought that if looks could kill he would not need that rifle he shot her in the arm with or even his bare hands.

She looked around at the men standing and watching the medic work on Sam. Their faces were all hard as stone. She believed what the General said as she realize just how vulnerable her situation was. Not a single one of these men was in awe or swayed by her.

Uncertainty and fear filled her. Melpomene was feeling dreadful as lifted her cuffed hands and touched her cheek where it stung from his slap. Then she scratched at her neck and face.

Her whole body was beginning to itch badly. By firelight she saw that she had little blisters forming on her hands. She squirmed as the burning and itching sensation increased in her privates.

Derek finished the IV quickly. He was about to add some pain medication as Drake was checking Sam's body for injures but held off as he asked "I don't think I should give this to him. I'm afraid of depressing his respirations more than they already are."

Drake nodded "No we cannot give him pain meds yet. He had one broken rib. But I don't think it punctured the lung based on lung sounds."

He then looked at the General and said "Sir, the blood on him is not his. The only injuries beyond the contusions I can find at the moment are the burns and the broken rib. There may be internal injuries and his lungs are severely compromised. He is running a fever but he is hypothermic. We need to evac him to the local hospital. He is in no shape to make it to Ottawa."

William had regained his composure and asked "Did you bring a collapsible gurney?"

Mason stepped forward "That won't be necessary. I'll carry him. It will be less jarring on his rib that way. Less pain since he cannot have pain meds yet."

Jude turned to look at Spike and asked "He can carry Sam that far?"

Winds overheard and stated "He's carried Blondie farther and in worse shape before."

Jude blinked at that. Whoa. But then Jude recalled all those awards Sam had received. That press conference was impressive when they refuted Dupont's claim of assault. Jude wasn't the least bit sorry that man died in prison. What Dupont had done to Sam as a child was despicable.

Blaze stated "We cannot all fit in the helo."

Derek looked at Drake and offered "I'll stay and tend to the other two. You go with Sam."

William stood and said "Zach will evac Sam first and return for the other two. Jeff, Spike, Wordy and Blaze will go with Drake, Samuel, Mason and I."

Then he added "Sorry Winds, I need to leave a senior man here."

"Understood Sir. Rollie and I will take charge and move the group to the landing area as soon as the subjects are tended and we put out the fire properly" Winds stated.

He wanted to go but he also knew that Blaze needed to go.

The radio crackled and Cameo's voice came over Blaze's radio "Base to Alpha, Blaze do you copy?"

Blaze answered "Copy."

Cameo stated in a frustrated voice "Been trying to raise you. Have a message from Jules. Important. Do not shoot Yawls. He is helping Sam."

Blaze couldn't help the chuckle that came out "Copy but a little late. Evacing Blondie from the top of the ridge in just a few moments. Two subjects in custody, both injured. Recall Charlie unit to base. Bravo unit here and will be evacing via the helo on a return trip. Destination the local hospital. Once Charlie unit arrives head to the La Dore hospital."

Cameo responded "Roger. Blondie's status? The others will want to know."

"Stable but serious" Blaze stated looking down at Blondie as Drake and Derek were wrapping his chest in preparation for moving him. He ended the transmission and the group headed out.

Yawls sat near the fire watching Blaze and Winds talk a moment before Blaze headed out with the rest. He knew them. Blaze had taken his gun and prevented him from killing Plouffe.

His eyes shifted to the other side of the fire and he glared daggers at Plouffe. If only he could get one of the guns the men were carrying he could kill Plouffe once and for all.

With the General gone, Melpomene screeched again when the medic went to Yawls first leaving her bleeding still.

The guys simply ignored her ranting and complaints that she should be taken care of next. She complained that she was hungry, that she was cold and wet and that she itched. As they continued to ignore her, her mouth turned filthy as she cussed a blue streak.

.

* * *

 _ **AN:** Ahhh Sam rescued but not out of the woods yet. And for those that wanted William to have killed Mel, I couldn't do that until she suffers the poison ivy in the privates. She needs to suffer and she may still die. _

_She surely learned you don't piss off the General. His striking a woman was a little out of character but in his defense, he only minutes before thought his son died and Mel had laughed about it and Sam is struggling to breathe and that is all because of her._


	21. Blaze Reflects, Vise Clamp, Leah & Bunny

**Blaze Reflects, Vise Clamp, Leah & Bunny Shell**

* * *

 _ **Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan – Hike to Helicopter**_

Wordy and Zach hastened to the helicopter at a faster clip than the rest of the group.

Zach wanted to get preflight checks done and have the bird ready to go when Mason arrived with Sam. He also needed Uncle Mark to prepare the back of the bird so there was room for Sam to lie down and to radio the La Dore hospital so they could prepare for their arrival.

Wordy was elected to contact Jules and Greg and give them Sam's status. It would take a gentle touch with Jules. He needed to be truthful but not brutally honest because Jules would not be able to be close to Sam for many hours.

As Wordy hurried trying to keep pace with Zach his mind turned to Shel. He hoped she and the baby were doing okay. He doubted that the contractions were just Braxton-Hicks contractions. Lilly, Holly and Allie were all born early. As much as he wanted to be here for Sam, he wanted to be at home for Shel and his baby.

Wordy thought the situation for he and Jules were somewhat similar. Both were hours away from the one person they loved the most in this world. The only difference was that Shel was in the process of giving life and Sam was struggling to stay alive. Wordy prayed for a good outcome for both of them.

Mason was careful of the terrain. The last thing he wanted to do was slip on the mud and jar Blondie. His heart was relieved yet concerned. Relieved Blondie was alive but the breathing he heard, or rather didn't hear, worried Mason a lot. He was also very glad that Blondie was unconscious because the pain would be unbearable.

William glanced at his son in Mason's arms as he shone the light directly in front of Mason. He wanted to make sure Mason's way was well lit. Samuel was alive. Alive.

He still shook with slight tremors as his mind replayed the images of Samuel falling off the cliff. Without realizing he was speaking out loud William said "Samuel you must have one hell of a guardian angel. How the hell you hung onto that bush with not only your weight but also Yawls' and in your present condition, I cannot fathom."

Blaze was on the opposite side of Mason. He was ready to lend a hand if Mason slipped and was lighting the way with his flashlight too. He let out a half-laugh as he said "Reminds me of that artillery strike Sir. How the hell he survived that, well it is beyond my comprehension. Miracle is the only word I have to describe it."

Jeff who was guiding the group in the most direct route to the helicopter added "Right up there with when he flew off the cliff to save Murphy in Special Forces training. You know some of the long-time drill instructors still talk about that occasionally."

Spike interjected "Add jumping off the roof to save Jules in Medicine Hat to the list of amazing survival stories." Then in a quieter voice that was gruff with emotion Spike added "And when Sam saved me from Vlad. Not sure how he was able to withstand everything Vlad did to him and still break those zip ties."

Mason, Blaze and William all thought but did not say, or when he survived three months of horrific torture.

William felt anger grow in him as he thought of the reason for Samuel's compromised lungs. He quietly added "Or how he survived Merrill's armor piercing round."

Blaze cringed inwardly. He had been too late that day to save Blondie from Plouffe's machinations and Merrill's bullet. He had been blind for six years to what the Major had done to Blondie. If he let it, guilt could consume him. Blaze took his own advice, advice he had counseled Blondie to take for years, and let the burden drop.

It was the past and there was nothing he could do to change it. He also realized like Jim he needed to move forward. He had for the most part. He had married the love of his life, Lizzy. Soon he would add his fifth son. Blondie, Ryan and Ben although not his son's biologically were as much his son's as little Sammy and soon to be born Nathan.

Blaze wondered how Lizzy was doing. Had Nathan been born already? Would he make it in time to see his son's birth? If not that would be okay. Lizzy would understand. Blondie had needed him. Once he got Blondie to the hospital and under the care of doctors there would be nothing more he could do. So at that point, he would head to Lizzy.

His thoughts turned to thinking about how much he enjoyed fatherhood and how lucky he was to have Lizzy. It was a path he never considered for himself until he had met the Ice Queen. That was the silver lining from the mission that hot summer day when he had been so distracted by learning his sister was still alive and that she and Matt had a boy.

When he was told Daphy was dead he never thought he would be an uncle. But with Daphy's Ben, Jim's two kids Brianna and little Matt, Mason's son Lachlann and Blondie's daughter Sadie he was uncle to five. It was probably better that he begin the transition to a desk job now. So many things had changed since the first day Blondie walked into his life all cocky and brightly smiling and laughing at something an equally smiling and laughing Matt had said to him.

Blaze thought that many of the things he took for granted, the good things in his life, would not have happened if he had not met Blondie. That kid drew people together.

Although he and Winds were tight for more years than he cared to count, never had he commanded a unit quite like the unit he had with Blondie, Matt, Patch, Ripsaw, Mason and Winds. They were all pulled closer together in the common goal of protecting Blondie. They had forged unbreakable bonds of brotherhood without blood.

Too bad they had not figured out who they should be protecting Blondie from. They had all thought it was the General that Blondie needed protection from. Blaze glanced at the General and thought, oh how wrong they all were. The General loved his son dearly and would go to the ends of the earth for him. Just like Blaze would.

It still rankly Blaze that Major Plouffe had done a superb job in covering his tracks. For six years, Plouffe made Blondie and the rest of them think it was the General that was sending Blondie on all those missions. Blaze shook his head as he put a clamp on his feelings as anger tried to rear its ugly head again.

Blaze knew he had lost his cool once today and he did not need a repeat. He had come so close to actually pulling that trigger on Tocci. To him she seemed like a female Plouffe. He was glad that Winds put his hand on his shoulder. It pulled him back from the point of no return. Blaze knew that he would have become a murderer the instant he pulled that trigger.

If he had done that then he would miss out on all the good things that made up his life now. Blaze let his mind bring up images of a very pregnant Lizzy and conjure images of what little Nathan would look like when he was born. That made him smile. His life was good. No his life was great. He had found his own version of the beauty of life that Matt had always spoke about.

As they all walked in silence for some time, William felt anger continue to grow in him. Hearing that Plouffe had raped Yawls brought back so many angry memories about Plouffe. There was not a single thing redeemable in Plouffe. Not a single thing.

William angrily muttered "Plouffe died a too easy death. If I could just dig Plouffe up and make him pay for all the harm he has caused so many people I would. He almost won today."

Blaze was brought out of his musings hearing the General's angry tone. He calmly stated "But he didn't Sir."

The men then walked in silence. The only sound was the muted sounds of boots tramping on damp earth and leaves. All the wild animals were silent as the group of men passed through their domain.

Sam had roused enough to hear all the conversation but did not have the strength to lift the lids of his eyes or indicate he was awake. He was having more and more difficulty getting air in. His chest hurt so badly, like a vise clamp was closing around it tightening with every breath.

When it became utterly unbearable and he knew he needed help, Sam managed to breathlessly voice "Matt … help … me."

"Samuel, what about Matt?" William asked not sure if he heard the soft words spoken behind the oxygen mask correctly. Was Samuel hallucinating and thinking Matt was here?

Sam tried to answer but he was hit with a coughing fit that had him jerking in Mason's arms.

Blaze quickly said to the General "Blondie believes that Matt is his guardian angel. He fell down the stairs in Scotland and thought he saw Matt. Blondie talked to Matt like Matt was actually there. He has a fever, he might be hallucinating again. Matt was always there for him when he was in pain."

It was a short but violent coughing fit that left Sam weakened, gasping for air and feeling like the vise clamp around his chest just squeezed tighter.

Mason halted as soon as Blondie began coughing. His eyes sought out Drake as Blondie struggled to breathe as he said "Blondie breathe."

Drake rushed forward and checked Sam's pulse. It was racing and far too rapid. He asked "Sam what's your pain level?"

Sam could not get enough air in and the agonizing pressure in his chest was increasing with every small sip of air. Talking was impossible. Sam managed to hold up eight fingers.

If Spike had not been shining his light at Sam they would have missed the slight movement of Sam's hand. Spike said "Eight. Sam is trying to show us eight."

When he could not get another breath in the pressure in his chest was too great, Sam managed to open his eyes. His eyes were frantic and pleading when they locked on his dad's eyes. His mouth opened and closed like a gulping fish out of water.

Sam was suffocating and could not tell them.

William, Blaze, Spike, Mason and Drake all yelled simultaneously "He's not getting any air."

Mason immediately went to his knees and laid Blondie on the ground. Drake dropped next to him and began his assessment. Blaze, Jeff, Spike and William stood shining lights for Drake to see and work.

Drake looked at Mason "His lung has collapsed. Grab a fourteen gauge catheter and cut me a piece about four inches long" he said as he reached into another part of his pack to get antiseptic wipes, three gloves and a pair of scissors. Drake gloved up and then took the small scissors and snipped off the tip of one of the fingers on the third glove.

He cleaned the area on Sam's chest with the antiseptic wipes as he urgency called out "Sam close your eyes. NOW!"

Sam closed his eyes mostly because he could not hold them open any longer.

William dropped to his knees near Samuel's head and gently put his hand over Samuel's eyes. He leaned in close to Sam's ear as he whispered "You listen to me son. You will fight. You will live. Jules and Sadie need you. I need you. Fight son. Fight."

Once Sam's eyes were closed and covered Drake pulled out a three inch long, fourteen gauge needle. He inserted the needle through the fingertip of the glove to create a one way valve and then quickly inserted the needle all the way to the hub into Sam's chest. Drake withdrew the needle leaving the hub in place. He placed the needle out of Sam's line of sight then quickly attached a very large empty syringe. Drake then pulled the plunger up, withdrawing the air from Sam's chest cavity.

Sam finally was able to draw in a gasping, shallow breath as the pressure in his chest diminished.

Mason handed over the four inch piece of catheter as Drake removed the syringe from the hub. Drake secured the catheter to the hub and then taped it to Sam's chest, careful to avoid the second degree burns. Drake wondered what caused those burns.

William gently caressed Samuel's forehead as he uncovered Samuel's eyes. Samuel was so hot to the touch. William could tell the fever was rising.

He looked down and was greeted with blue eyes that had calmed from the frantic pleading for help. But his son's eyes were filled with pain. William wished they could give him pain meds.

William softly said "I know it hurts son. We will stop the pain as soon as we can. I promise to get Jules here quickly. You just concentrate on breathing."

Drake sat back on his heels and let out a relieved slow breath "Pressure and a bit of the pain should be lessening now Sam."

Sam gave a slight nod as he sucked in another shallow breath. The vise clamp on his chest was indeed lessening a bit.

Spike asked "What collapsed his lung? I thought you said his lungs were not punctured."

Drake checked Sam's pulse again and found it still elevated but not like it had been. Although high, that was to be expected after nearly suffocating and the amount of pain Sam was surely in.

Looking up at Spike, Drake answered "Due to his prior lung trauma, Sam has some weak spots on his lungs. I believe the infection and violent coughing fit he just had caused one of those weak spots to burst. When it burst, it allowed air to escape from his lung and into his chest cavity causing the lung to collapse. The valve will work until we get him to the hospital."

Then he looked at Mason and said "Pick him up again. We need to get moving. If you can try to position him so his head is elevated. It will make it easier for Sam to breathe.

William quickly took off his jacket and folded it in fourths as he said "Put this between your arm and Samuel. It should raise him a bit."

Spike and Blaze did the same thing and in short order Mason was again carrying Blondie with three jackets providing enough bulk to raise Blondie's head.

As Mason walked he whispered to Blondie "You know I think I believe you now. Matt must surely be your guardian angel. You've survived too much shit not to have a plethora of guardian angels. But Matt is surely the leader of them."

Sam laid his head on Mason's chest as he tried to breathe through the pain. This was one time he wished he could have pain meds but understood why they could not give them too him. It sucked big time. He wished he would pass out again, even for a little while for some relief.

Mason's foot hit a slick spot. He jerked to remain upright. Blaze and William reached out to steady Mason and prevent him from falling.

The jerk was small but enough to send pain lancing through Sam's chest. As his vision grayed and unconsciousness came to claim him again Sam thought, thanks Matt.

 _Mason's guardian angel, Dubbiel whose name means bear-God and was an angel of protection, looked at Matt as he demanded angrily "Why did you make Mason almost fall? It caused Blondie more pain. Mason is feeling guilty enough without you adding to his guilt."_

 _Matt reached out and touched Sam's cheek as he responded sadly to Dubbiel "Sam needed relief from the pain. I had to cause more pain so he would go unconscious. Just whisper to Mason, Sam is not in pain right now. Mason will understand that."_

The group of men made good time to the helicopter without any more incidents and Sam remained unconscious for the duration of the remainder of the hike.

* * *

 _ **Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan – Base of the Ridge**_

Scott and the rest of Charlie unit had raced in the direction of the gun shots. They had made it to the base of the ridge in record time. It was a good thing that they did not have to swim the river to reach it. This time of year, it would be ice cold and not crossable without tempting fate to induce hypothermia.

They had scanned the area looking for any sign of Sam when they first arrived. Scott, Galloway, Phil, Leah, Craig, Daniel and Tyler had all stopped dead in their tracks and looked up at the ridge as they heard the several voices yelling no. The anguish was clear in the voices.

Sound carried so well in the night of this remote area. There was no traffic or city sounds to disturb the quiet. It was one of the reasons Scott liked to camp here. Not that he had gotten much opportunity to go camping in the last six or seven years. Scott had not gone camping since that ski trip with Sam and Spike and that was four years ago.

After the yell of no it had gone silent.

Scott thought that whatever happened up on the ridge was bad. He had half expected to see or hear Sam's body crashing down the mountain. Then they heard Uncle Will's and Sam's gut wrenching roars.

They had all shone their flashlights up the ridge when they heard that but the top of the ridge was too far away for their lights to reach. Relief had washed through Scott when he heard Mason calling for ropes.

Scott sat on a rock at the base of the ridge, took off his pack dropping it near a bush and leaned back on the rocky surface of the cliff. He would wait for Mike's news. Mike was trying to raise Cameo. But the signal strength was wonky at best.

Leah sat next to Scott and she could see the lines of worry in a face that looked so much like Sam's it was uncanny. She placed her hand on his knee offering a bit of comfort and said "Sam is going to be okay. We heard Mason call for ropes and Wordy tell Sam to hang on. They got him. I'm sure of it."

She didn't say I'm sure because if they didn't Sam would be down here with them now. She had learned to curb her awkward statements over her time with SRU. Leah had the whole team to thank for that. They were all great mentors.

Leah leaned back and closed her eyes. She was exhausted like the rest of them. They would wait here until Mike was able to get through to Cameo and determine what they should do next.

She let her mind think on Sam. He was a good guy. A really good guy. She still remember her first lethal. Sam had taken the time to walk her through the process even though his nephew Ben had been taken by terrorists. Sam had stood there on that hot summer day and made sure she was alright.

Heck, he had saved her life earlier that day too. Leah was still in awe of him running across the window and launching himself at Ran Long Hee. She chuckled.

Scott looked at Leah and asked "What are you thinking about?"

Leah smiled and said "Hee Ran Long."

Scott chuckled remembering what Sam had told him about that day.

Tyler looked with a bit of confusion at Scott and Leah and asked "Who ran long and why is that funny?"

Leah looked at Scott who nodded slightly then turned to Tyler and said "It was before your time. We had a warrant call. The subject's name was Ran Long Hee. Spike jinxed us when he flipped the name Hee Ran Long. Sam ended up chasing the subject for nearly two miles on one of the hottest, muggiest days of summer. The whole day cumulated with some seriously strange things."

Then she let her mind dwell a bit on that whole time. The team had been awful to Leo. She had a part in that although she had tried to be welcoming. The others were just so distraught that Sam was just gone and they could not get any information about him.

She blew out a breath and put those memories away then said to Tyler "That's how your team's sniper, Mike Fringle, joined SRU. He came in as a temporary for Sam while Sam recovered from some injuries."

Phil laughed and said "You know, I think that is the main path to SRU these days. Sam gets hurt, temp replacement comes on board and when an opening is available the temp tends to get the open position. That is how Jude, Kaleb, Chad, Sean and Xing all joined SRU."

Leah nodded and said "Yep, that whole reserve officer training program came about as a result of Sam. His light duty tends to mean intensive training for everyone. It used to just be the reserve officers but Commander Holleran expanded that to include whatever team is working when Sam is on light duty."

Mike was pacing as the radio finally crackled with Cameo's response. Mike quickly said "We heard shouting from the top of the ridge. Did they get Sam?"

He listened as Cameo explained what had happened and what the plan was. Mike's heart felt lighter as he turned to the group waiting expectantly for news.

Mike grinned "They got Sam. He is serious but stable as they head for the helo."

Whoops were yelled by members of Charlie unit. Phil and Tyler slapped each other's back. Their TL had beaten the odds again. They had found him and gotten him out alive.

When the celebrating quieted down a bit Mike continued "They are evacuating Sam first to the local hospital. Then Zach will return to get those left watching the subjects. We need to head back to base. We get the pleasure of a night hike and driving all the SUVs to the hospital."

Then Mike amended that "Well not quite all the SUVs, Ed and Lance took one and are already on their way to the hospital. Sean stayed back so Cameo was not left alone."

Scott stood and said "What are we waiting for?"

Everyone picked up their packs and hoisted them on their backs to prepare for the hike back to the SUVs.

Bending down to pick up his pack, Scott's hand brushed something soft on the bush near his pack. He switched on his flashlight and shined it on the bush. He stared for a long moment.

Leah had donned her pack and started to head out. She took ten paces before she realized Scott was not moving. She asked "Is everything alright Scott?" as she headed back to Scott.

She stopped and looked at what Scott was looking at. Mike, Phil and Tyler joined them. They stared a bit dumbfounded.

Coming out of his stupor Scott reached out and picked up the empty shell of love worn yellow bunny rabbit. Scott's voice was incredulous and soft "Sadie's bunny."

Tyler grinned "That's where the stuffing came from. Sam must have had it. That was a smart thing to do."

Mike grinned "Sam was well trained to survive and use whatever he has available to increase his chances of survival."

They all looked up the cliff. This is where Sam would have landed if he had fallen.

Scott slung his pack over his shoulders and said "Let's move out."

He gripped the furry bunny shell and smiled. Sadie would get her daddy _and_ her bunny back.


	22. Winds In Charge, Ugly Bag, Jules' Worry

**Winds In Charge, Ugly Bag, Jules' Worry & A Father's Comfort**

* * *

 _ **Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan – Top of Ridge**_

Winds stood off at a distance from the rest of the men. His mind was running through everything that had happened in the past two days. He was exhausted but he had to push through. He and Rollie were in charge of getting the two subjects safely to the landing area along with the JTF2 unit guys Russ, Jack and Derek and the SRU snipers Mike and Jude.

His eyes landed on Mike Fringle. Winds recalled that the SRU sniper had two sets of triplets. He grinned, in two shots Mike ended up with six kids. Winds thought that if Blaze and Lizzy had one more they would equal Mike's brood. Little Nathan would make five for Blaze.

Well technically only two but Blaze had the biggest heart he knew and he loved being the dad to Ryan and Ben. And Blaze was a defacto dad of sorts to Blondie even though Blondie was only thirteen years younger than Blaze.

The father/son bonding between Blondie and Blaze happened shortly after Blondie joined their unit even though neither of them recognized it. Winds saw it early but didn't say anything. Blaze innately saw that Blondie was lost and needed a caring father figure.

Winds knew that Blaze had instinctively assumed that role for Blondie. As CO, Blaze always ensured he took care of what his unit needed. And Blondie had needed a father back then. Winds was glad that Blondie had reconciled with his dad. It still hurt that he had not recognized the signs that the General was trying to protect his son.

But then again, the General never made it easy back then. They never saw him visit Blondie when he was hurt. The first time Blondie was hospitalized the General had pissed off Blaze when he called to tell the General that Blondie was hurt. The General's comments had made them all think he was a cold uncaring bastard towards his only son. And then after Blondie was rescued from the terrorists, the General had ordered Blondie not to commit suicide because they invested so much in training him.

Winds shook his head. God, the General did not make it easy for them to realize he loved his son. If only they had known what had happened to Blondie when he was nine. They might have seen it for what it really was. But then Matt who knew Blondie better than all of them had not seen the truth about the General either. That made Winds feel slightly better, even though it shouldn't.

As he watched Mike Fringle guarding Tocci as Drake worked on Yawls, Winds' thoughts returned to Blaze. That was one man that was definitely father material. He was glad that Blaze was there for Blondie when he needed him. Winds was also so glad that Blaze had found and married Lizzy and started his own family.

He hoped that Blaze would get to Lizzy before his namesake was born. That brought a slight smile to his face. Blaze certainly fell off the confirmed bachelor wagon hard when he met Lizzy. He was glad for Blaze.

Winds was about to sit down and rest a moment when he saw Russ head off alone into the trees. He sighed and started towards Russ. He knew that look. Russ needed some help. This unit was his soon and his job as commander of this unit was to ensure all his men were squared away just like Blaze had done for them all these years.

Russ headed to the trees. He was gonna be sick. Russ could not get the image of Blondie falling off the cliff out of his head. It played over and over and was overlaid with a soundtrack of the General's anguished yelling of his son's name. His shot nearly cost Blondie his life and his General and unit mates untold pain.

He dropped to the forest floor and bent over. Russ heaved and heaved. When he was done he was shaky as he sat back on his heels. Russ was surprised when a water bottle was put in front of him.

Winds held out the water bottle and said "Rinse."

Russ took the bottle and did just that. He then adjusted and turned to sit on the ground with his back up against a tree and his knees bent before him. Russ ran a shaky hand over his face.

"Thanks. I don't know what came over me. Maybe I ate something bad" Russ said to deflect from the real reason.

Winds crouched down and softly said "That's a load of crap Russ. You know damned well what caused that and so do I."

Russ looked up and knew by the look on Winds' face he had to come clean. So Russ said "It was me. My shot. I sent Blondie over that cliff. If he had not somehow managed to grab that bush …" Russ blew out a shaky breath "Blondie would be dead."

Winds nodded and responded "Yes it was your shot. But you were ordered to fire. You were following orders. At the time we thought Yawls was going to throw Blondie over. You did the right thing."

Russ shook his head "No." The pushed rapidly to his feet "NO! It is my fault Blondie went over. I should have taken a kill shot and dropped Yawls where he stood."

Standing slowly Winds reached out for Russ and clamped a hand on his shoulder "Russ, look at me."

Russ couldn't. He just couldn't. He dropped his head and his gaze remained on the ground.

Winds moved his hand from Russ' shoulder and firmly gripped his chin and lifted it. "Russ I'm going to say this once and you will listen. You. Followed. Orders. The outcome of following orders is not always what we personally want and we have to deal with that. But as a soldier it is your duty to follow lawful orders. Blondie knows that better than most and will not hold it against you that it was your shot."

He softened his tone as he let go of Russ' chin and continued "Russ, no one here blames you for what happened. We all know and we all understand. No one could have predicted that. Shit just happens. You know that too. You have enough field experience over the years to know that. You are a damned fine soldier Russ."

Russ looked at Winds, his voice sad "But it was Blondie, our General's son. There is no way the General is gonna forgive me for nearly killing his son. Beyond what I feel, the guilt … I can kiss my career goodbye too."

Winds laughed. Russ stared at Winds.

After a minute of deep, gut laughter, drawing the attention of the others, Winds finally stopped and said "I thought you knew your General, Russ."

Russ stared blankly at Winds. The laughter was disconcerting; the statement even more so. Russ stumbled out "I do. There is nothing General Braddock values more than his family. I nearly killed his son. I'm screwed."

Winds arched a brow and added "He also values the soldiers under his command. He is a fair and just man of honor. He has field experience. The General was sniper. He understands what it is like to be behind the scope and the heavy burden that position carries."

Then he said "You know I was going to wait to tell you this but I think you need to know now. Master Corporal Russell A. Kostopoulos, I've selected you to be my second in command when I take over the unit from Blaze. The paperwork is all but signed. You have the right combination of skills and leadership. I trust you with my life Russ. Daniel, Cameo and Derek all look to you for leadership when Blaze and I are not around."

To say he was shocked was an understatement. Russ simply stared open mouthed at Winds. Finally he got words out "Wow, thanks Winds. Wait … you said all but paperwork signed." His features change to disappointment "The General won't be signing them now."

Winds shook his head. He knew what he had to do to resolve this. But for right now he said "Let's get back to the others and see if Derek needs a hand with that bitch. She is a crazy piece of work."

Russ nodded and then followed Winds out of the trees and back to the fire.

Derek saw Winds follow Russ into the trees. He was glad that Winds was going after him. Russ had looked pale and waxy when he had seen him. Derek had since learned that the wound he was treating in Yawls' shoulder was from Russ. That it had caused Yawls and Sam to go over the cliff.

He felt bad that Russ would carry that burden. But at least Sam had grabbed that bush. Derek looked to Jude who was assisting him now and said "Okay just hold that in place for me as I tape it off."

Jude reached down and held the dressing in place with one hand while holding the bag of saline up with the other.

Then to Yawls, Derek said "You are lucky. It is a through and through. I don't think it hit anything major. Once I get this taped up I want to give you something for pain. Do you have any allergies that I need to be aware of?"

Yawls shook his head "No." Then he turned his head to Melpomene and said "He has to die."

Jude stiffened.

Rollie who was standing near them with his MP5 ready for anything while the other two men treated the subject asked "Who has to die?"

Lifting his arm and pointing at Melpomene he said "He does. Plouffe cannot be allowed to hurt any more innocents."

Derek, Jude and Rollie shared glances. This man was delusional and thought that Tocci was Plouffe.

Rollie said "You are pointing at Melpomene Tocci. Major Plouffe is dead and has been for many years. I know because I was there when he died. He tried to shoot the General and Winds took the lethal shot."

Yawls shook his head "I don't believe you. He is right there. Why are you protecting him? Just let me kill him. He hurt me. He hurt Sam. We were both brutally raped because of him."

Rollie and Derek shared a look. The man was out of his head. Clearly Yawls had no idea what he was saying.

Jude cringed but then wondered what this Major Plouffe had to do with Sam's molestation. Jude could have sworn the man that assaulted Sam when he was eleven was named Dupont not Plouffe. That hot call at the courthouse had been a difficult one for everyone.

Hearing Sam tell the father of that little boy who had been violently sexually abused by Dupont that he was Dupont's first victim when he was eleven had been so hard to listen too. But Sam had shared his painful past to connect with Oliver and he had gotten him to lower the knife and give up.

From that day to this, Jude had never spoken to anyone about what he heard that day. He was not about to start either. So he looked at Rollie and said "He is so mixed up. I feel badly for him. Yawls clearly needs help. Who knows what Tocci said to him to manipulate him and make him target Sam?"

Rollie and Derek both nodded.

Abner did not hear Jude because he was already lost in his own world and muttering quietly "Enemy of my enemy is my enemy."

Melpomene's butt and private area was on fire and it itched beyond all belief. Her neck, face and hands were itching too and blisters were forming. Even the top of her head where the goose had pooped on her was itching.

She was utterly miserable. Melpomene yelled at Derek "I'm dying over here. I'm in pain. You are such a slow medic. Yawls is a worthless piece of shit. You should be taking care of me. My arm is on fire. I think I'm having an allergic reaction to being shot. I itch all over."

Derek had just about enough of listening to the witch. He shifted and turned his head to her "Shut up Mel. I'll get to you when I'm finished tending Yawls."

Melpomene stood as rage contorted her face. She took two steps towards Derek as she yelled "My name is Melpomene. I am all woman. Mel is a man's name. Men are worthless."

Mike pointed his MP5 directly at Melpomene's head as she took two steps toward Derek. When she stopped to take a breath Mike stated firmly "Sit back down or I will have to shoot you."

Melpomene went to take another step towards Derek in her rage she was not going to let this slight pass. She yelled "You will tend me now. I am a woman and should be taken care of first." Pointing both cuffed hands at Yawls she accused "He's the one that hurt Sam. I didn't lay a finger on him. He hit Sam with a pipe and beat the crap out of him."

Mike flipped the safety off and firmly stated "Back off now and sit down or else. I'm not telling you again."

Jack reached out to grab her arm when Derek yelled "Don't touch her Jack."

Letting his hand fall away at Derek's shout and shifting his eyes to Derek he asked "Why?"

Getting his first good look at the woman Derek said "She is covered in a blistering rash."

Derek quickly finished taping off the dressing and then stood. As he walked toward her he asked "Who cuffed her?"

Mike said "I did. Why?"

Derek looked at Winds and Russ, who were now exiting the woods, and he called out to his CO "Winds, we have a problem here."

Winds and Russ raced towards Derek as he responded "What sort of problem?"

Stepping closer to Melpomene, Derek visually inspected her. Damn. He then said "Step closer to the fire Ms. Tocci, I need to have a look at that rash."

Melpomene curtly said "About damned time."

Getting a closer look, Derek asked "Have you touched any leaves?"

Melpomene rolled her eyes as she snidely said "These damned woods are full of leaves. Of course I've touched them. What an idiotic question. All men are fucking clueless."

Yawls started laughing hysterically. His mind had shifted and he now saw Melpomene instead of Plouffe.

Melpomene shrieked at Yawls "What the hell are you laughing at?"

Abner looked to Derek and said "Talk about clueless; she took a leak in a bush of poison ivy. Walked straight through it and squatted down. Sam and I had a good laugh about that."

Derek ordered "Everyone get you water bottles out, Mike needs your water. We need to wash his hands and bag anything that he has touched. Mike did you brush up against her anywhere else?"

Mike unhooked his MP5 and shook his head "Only my hands."

He was none too happy. His three daughters had gotten into poison ivy last summer when they were camping. It was no fun for any of them and they headed home early with three very uncomfortable girls. Mike looked at his hands and thought, this bites.

"Have you touched your face or any place else?" Derek asked quickly getting out a bag of large black plastic sheets and several pairs of gloves.

Mike shook his head no "Just my MP5."

Winds and Russ took the gloves from Derek. Derek then handed a pair to Jude and Rollie as he said "You two need to help Mike. If we can clean his hands well enough we can hopefully prevent the rash. Winds and Russ will help me with Tocci."

Rollie and Jude quickly donned the gloves and gathered the water bottles and canteens that everyone set down near Mike.

Winds turned to Jack and ordered "Keep alert. Both Tocci and Yawls are under your guard while we help Derek."

Jack nodded and adjusted his weapon so he was ready if need be.

Derek approached Melpomene and stated calmly "Ms. Tocci you have a poison ivy rash. That is why you are blistered and itching. The oils from the leaves of poison ivy remain on clothing and the skin. I am not equipped to decontaminate you at this point since you are already covered in the rash and blisters. They will have to do that at the hospital."

He looked at Winds and cringed before he said the next thing "However, I'm afraid that you must strip completely, including undergarments but not your footwear. I have some plastic sheeting that we will cover you in."

Melpomene's eyes widened "No. I am not stripping in front of all you stupid men. You will force yourselves on me. You will not be able to keep your hands off my beautiful body."

Winds tried not to laugh but a little escaped as he said "I assure you Madam that not a single man will touch you." In his head he added or even care to look at your sorry assed ugly body bitch. There isn't any incentive that could make any one of the men here _ever_ consider touching her.

Derek added "The rash will only continue to get worse if you do not shed your clothing. I do have some antihistamine that will help a little with the itching. Once we get you into the plastic sheets I will be able to give you that and tend to your arm. You can comply willingly or we can do it for you. I will not risk the health and well-being of any of these men escorting you to the helicopter in those clothes."

Jack pointed his gun at Melpomene and with a hard look on his face he drawled out "I'd be happy to put her out of her misery right now."

Winds had a really hard time keeping a straight face. He knew for a fact Jack would never shoot an unarmed person and Jack's safety was on. But the look on Melpomene's face was priceless. He couldn't wait to tell Blondie, Blaze and Mason about this turn of events.

She began to unbutton her shirt. Derek unfolded a large black sheet of plastic and then handed it off to Russ to cut a hole in the center of it so once Tocci was undressed she could put her head through the hole. She would be wearing a sheet poncho of sorts. It was the best Derek could do for her given their supplies.

Melpomene stripped completely and complained indignantly at the ugliness of the plastic sheet and that she would be filing a complaint with the Army and police forces for inhumane treatment of a prisoner and for improper lewd behavior on each one of the men here.

Once she was seated on a rock, Derek moved forward and began to tend the wound in her arm. The General had damned fine aim. It was a shot placed to cause her to drop the weapon but not one that would damage the major structures of the arm.

As he worked Melpomene kept squirming. He stated "Hold still."

"I can't. I itch … down there" Melpomene complained.

Derek asked "Did you use leaves … down there?"

"Yes" she said curtly.

Derek nodded and reached for his antihistamine tablets and dropped two in her hand "This is the best I can do right now. I'm not equipped to handle poison ivy since I'm stationed in the desert."

Melpomene continued to gripe about everything. Derek was glad when he was done. He didn't know how much more he could take without backhanding the bitching woman.

Derek stood and looked to Winds as he stated "Just need to pack up and we are ready to go."

Winds nodded and said "Mike you ready?"

Mike looked up from where he sat near the fire to keep warm after removing his jacket, vest and uniform shirt just in case they were contaminated with poison ivy. He was taking no chances, his daughters were miserable for nearly a week.

As he stood up, not looking forward to what would now be a cold hike, Mike responded "Yeah I'm ready. Let's get out of here. I want to see how Sam is doing."

Jack was able to drop is weapon as Winds took over guarding Tocci. He turned to Sam's teammate and said "Mike, I have a spare hoodie in my bag. You are welcome to have it. It is cold out here."

Mike smiled and said "Thanks Jack I appreciate that."

Jack pulled it out and tossed it to Mike.

Russ opened his pack and dug around and pulled something out. Then he called out "Heads up Mike."

Mike caught what was thrown at him by Russ. It was a warm knit cap. He happily put it on feeling warmer already "Thanks Russ. But I gotta wonder what you are doing with a warm cap being stationed in the desert."

Russ chuckled and said "Those sniper perches in the middle of the desert get awful cold at night. Better to be prepared."

Mike mused aloud, "So that is why Sam always packs a knit cap in his bag."

Winds responded "Some habits are too ingrained to change. Matt always made sure Blondie had one in his pack after Blondie got really sick once after being in his perch for nearly a week during winter. It was a cold and wet week. The temperature overnight was only about thirty-six degrees Fahrenheit and it rained heavily."

Melpomene was incensed that they gave a jacket and hat to officer while she was freezing wearing nothing but a plastic sheet. Her shrill voice demanded "That hoodie and cap should have been given to me. I'm freezing in just this ugly bag."

Yawls said "You are the ugly bag. Ugly inside and out. I feel bad for that plastic sheet, it has to touch you. I wouldn't want to touch your ugliness with a ten foot pole."

The guys all laughed even though they probably shouldn't have, it was unprofessional. But damn, it was just too funny and they were all thinking the same damned thing. Yawls certainly had problems but he was funny and he did try to save Sam. Most of them felt a little bad for him being manipulated by this worthless woman.

Winds said to Melpomene "On your feet and get moving. It's time you shut your trap. I'm not so sure I can keep myself or my men from shooting you if you don't. We are sick of listening to you."

"You wouldn't shoot me. I'm a woman and unarmed" Melpomene stated arrogantly.

Rollie snorted "Don't be too sure about that. Winds here, doesn't take kindly to those who hurt his little brother Sam. He killed Major Plouffe. I'm sure it would be no skin off his back if he shot you. And in case you are wondering, we all would back him up that you attempted escape. My team and I don't take to kindly to people that hurt our friend and TL either."

Melpomene closed her mouth as she looked at all the men in the firelight. Their looks were all hard and they nodded to what the big police officer said.

Seeing not one man that she could manipulate among them, Melpomene began walking in the direction indicated. She watched as three of the men put out the fire. After a few moments she was really cold and itching terribly. In the dark as she walked, she covertly reached her cuffed hands down to scratch her privates.

Derek called out "I wouldn't scratch there madam. It will only make it worse and spread the rash."

Melpomene stared at him. How did he know she was scratching there?

"You were looking at me you pervert" she screeched.

Mike laughed and said "He didn't have to look at you. He's a medic and he knows about poison ivy. Something you should have learned about before trekking into the woods."

Melpomene ignored what the medic said and scratched herself vigorously. He was a stupid man, they all were. Melpomene needed relief so she would scratch.

* * *

 _ **General Braddock's Home**_

Jules laid on the floor with Sadie playing peekaboo. Sam loved to play this with Sadie and Sadie always delighted in it smiling, laughing and babbling happily with Sam.

She covered her face and then uncovered it saying "Peekaboo I see you."

Sadie squealed with laughter. Jules repeated it over and over and got the same response as Sadie's little legs kicked out excitedly.

Apollo and Pawn sat and watched. Both had smiles on their faces. The smiles were there because of seeing Sadie but also because Jules had received a call from Wordy via the radio in the helicopter. They had found and rescued Blondie.

Laura came into the room with Anna and Jerrell. Anna raced over to Sadie and plopped down on the floor and began playing peekaboo. Jerrell headed for Apollo to show him his collection of army men. Apollo and Pawn began to play with Jerrell setting up a battle on the table between the chairs they were sitting in.

Jules looked up at Laura and said "Thank you for all your help Laura."

Laura took a seat on the floor near Jules and said "I'm happy to help. You and Sadie are all packed and ready to go. Are you sure you don't want to leave Sadie in my care?"

Glancing at Sadie a moment Jules turned back to Laura "No, I'm still nursing her. Besides, it will do Sam a world of good to see Sadie. From what Wordy said he is in pretty bad shape. When they found him he was pretty bruised up with one broken rib, dehydrated, running a fever and Wordy said he has a bad cough and they are worried about bronchitis."

Laura nodded "Sam still has to be careful with his lungs."

"Yeah he does. Sam is good about ensuring he stays warm in the winter months. He wears special undershirts to keep his chest warm and dry" Jules shared.

Smiling Laura said "You are making a difference in him. He's finally taking care of himself a bit."

Jules laughed "I can't take any credit for that. Sam started doing that one on his own that first winter after he returned to the team once his lungs healed."

Looking at Sadie, Jules sighed "I think this little one has more to do with changes in Sam. Sadie is a daddy's girl. Both Sadie and Sam brighten up when they see each other."

"I noticed that" Laura said. Then she said "I put the new bunny Sam mailed in the diaper bag."

Jules smiled "Thanks. We need to leave Sara's bunny here. It was nice of the General to let Sadie use it. But it is Sara's and Yvonne and he need to have it here."

Laura asked "So have you heard more on Lizzy and Shel? Do we have two new babies yet?"

"Not yet. Lizzy's contractions are still far apart. Blaze will be on his way back with Zach, Mike Galloway and Wordy when they come and get me. Mike is going to fly Wordy to Toronto while Zach flies me and Sadie to La Dore. Wordy was happy to hear that Shel was doing fine. Her contractions started again. It is a good thing they kept her in the hospital. I hope he makes it there in time for the birth" Jules shared.

Then she chuckled "The Boss is having a grand time watching Wordy's and Shel's girls. He said that Marina is having fun with all the girls there. He said they were baking cookies and Marina was teaching them how to make cupcakes from scratch."

Laura responded "Greg's certainly gonna have to watch his weight. Marina is a good cook and a fantastic baker. The cupcakes she made for yours and Sam's wedding reception were delicious. I especially liked those oatmeal raisin ones with that chocolate cream frosting and walnut sprinkles."

Jules nodded "Marina came up with a special recipe for those because she wanted something that combined Sam's favorite cookie and my love of chocolate."

She then chuckled and said "Too be honest I licked off the chocolate frosting and Sam ate the cupcakes."

Jules fell silent a moment as she recalled their delayed wedding reception. They had held it after the Boss was released from the hospital. It turned into a huge affair with Yvonne, Bella, Sophie, Shel, Winnie, Laura, Lizzy, Marsaili and Marina planning and executing it. They had all wanted to give her and Sam a good day to remember since their actual wedding day had been blown to hell, literally.

Anna's squeal of delight had both Jules and Laura turning towards the girls.

Jules stared as Sadie was now on her tummy. She asked "Anna did you put Sadie on her tummy?"

Shaking her head Anna said "No. Sadie did it all by herself."

Grinning, Jules said to Laura "Sadie has two new things to show Sam. I can't wait for Sam to hear her babble dada."

Laura replied "That will surely do Sam good to hear that." Then she turned Sadie on her back and said "Show your mommy how you did that little one."

Jules watch Sadie roll over after a lot of effort. Then Jules glanced at the clock and prayed that time would speed up. Wordy had called about fifteen minutes ago. Sam should be in the air to the hospital by now. She knew that Mason was carrying him to avoid unnecessary jarring of his broken rib.

As a result, Mason and the rest were moving to the helicopter at a slower pace than Wordy and Zach did.

Jules was worried about Sam. There was more going on than Wordy let on. He wasn't untruthful but Jules was sure he had not told her everything. The broken rib and cough combination worried her a lot. It would be difficult for Sam to breathe deeply enough to keep his lungs clear.

She was trying to distract her mind from the worry right now. But that was difficult to do. She needed to be at his side already. Jules had a gut feeling that Sam was in distress. She often thought that she and Sam were two bodies that shared the one heart and soul.

Jules let herself be pulled back into conversation with Laura and watching Anna play with Sadie. But she could not shake the feeling that Sam was in pain and needed her badly.

* * *

 _ **Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan – Helicopter Enroute to La Dore Hospital**_

It was slower going than he wanted but it was important not to jar Samuel, William thought. When they made it to the helicopter Zach was flight ready and Wordy had contacted Jules, Greg and the hospital. Mark had prepared the back of the chopper so that Sam would be able to lie on a stretcher. He had placed blankets down to try and cushion the hard surface.

The men all got in and then helped get Sam onto the stretcher. Drake covered Sam with a light blanket. He explained that it was better at this point to keep his body temperature lower in case there was internal bleeding. It would slow it down. Additionally, it was helping with the fever Sam had and that it was better to rewarm him in the controlled environment of the hospital.

They were in the air in less than three minutes of arriving at the helicopter.

William looked down at Samuel from where he sat. His son had thankfully remained unconscious the rest of the hike to the helo. The shivering concerned him. The shallow breathing worried him too. He knew given his condition Samuel had a real fight on his hands. He was glad they were not too far from a hospital. William hoped the doctor had carefully reviewed Samuel's medical file and was properly prepared to treat him.

As Sam came around again he felt a different motion. Then sound penetrated. He was in a helicopter. Sam tried really hard to open his eyes. It was a struggle because his eyelids felt like fifty pound weights.

His lips felt so dry and cracked. He managed to run his tongue over the top lip to wet it. He didn't feel quite so dehydrated and figured the IV was helping with that. But his mouth was cottony and tasted foul and the insides of his cheeks still stung from the cuts from the punches.

Drake knelt by Sam and wetted a gauze pad with water then reached out and gently ran it over Sam's lips when he saw Sam's tongue peek out and try to wet them. Then he took his pulse and temperature. Drake wished he could take a listen to his breath sounds but the noise of the helo would drown that out.

The cool wet cloth that was dabbed on his lips felt good. Sam was finally successful in opening his eyes. He scanned the interior and saw several worried faces all staring at him. Sam wanted to tell them he was okay but that would be a lie and he didn't have the energy or breath for that.

Ah crap no, Sam thought as the coughing fit started. The pain that radiated through his chest was so intense he just wanted to curl up and die with each and every cough.

Drake went into action immediately pulling Sam to a semi-sitting position. He looked at the General and shouted to be heard "He cannot lay flat."

William nodded and stood. He moved to the side of the helo where Sam's head was located then sat down with his back against the door. He put his legs on either side of Sam straddling his body.

He shouted "Slide him back to me. I'll hold him up and support him."

Drake and Blaze got on opposite sides of Sam and moved him backwards a bit. Then they helped lean Sam onto his father's chest.

William felt the heat of the fever as he held Samuel close to his chest with one arm. He also felt helpless to relieve his son's suffering as Samuel rode the waves of the coughing fit. Then he got an idea from years past and William began to whisper in Samuel's ear.

None of the men could hear what the General was saying to Sam.

When the hacking finally stopped, Sam sagged backwards onto his dad. Sam was glad for the strong arm that held him partially upright, it was easier to breathe. He felt his dad's other hand on his head. The gentle strokes on his head had Sam closing his eyes and concentrating on that comforting feeling.

Sam heard his dad whisper in his ear "I love you so very much Sammy. I'm so sorry I cannot take the pain away yet. Lean on me. Concentrate on what makes you happy. Let's find your happy place so you can escape the pain. Think about Jules and Sadie. Jules makes you happy. Sadie makes you happy."

Feeling Samuel relax slightly into his chest William knew it was working a bit. So he continued in a low comforting tone "Sadie is a beautiful little girl Samuel. You are a lucky man. I'm a lucky man too. I gave Sadie Sara's bunny. We sat in your mother's favorite chair in Sara's old room and I told Sadie about Sara."

"I'm not sure if you remember or not but I do. Remember when you taught Sara how to ride without training wheels. You did good that day. I was so proud of you. Mostly for what you taught your sister. But also how you defended her even though you were facing much greater forces."

"You've always taken on challenges and put others above your own safety. That is commendable Sammy, but you are loved too much by so many for you to continue to do that. I don't know what I would do if I lost you son."

William softly chuckled "Sorry for the lecture that was not my intent. But you are loved so very much. Blaze told me you think Matt is your guardian angel. You know, I think so too. Matt was a good man, a good friend and I would have been proud to call him son too."

He continued whispering in Samuel's ear as his hand gently caressed his head. It reminded William of the time he held Samuel like this when he was only six and suffering from Q fever. Samuel had begged him not to leave him. As a result William had arranged to take extended leave.

That camping trip had been the best one he ever took with Samuel. It was too bad it ended with Samuel getting so ill. However, the time at home with Samuel as he recovered from Q fever was a special memory for him too. He had built Samuel that tree house. For three years Samuel had spent so much time playing in the tree house.

Sam concentrated on the sound of his dad's voice. The soft, slow cadence of it helped him to regulate his breathing a little better. It relaxed him. As he relaxed into the comfort of his dad's arms Sam was better able to manage the relentless pain.

He listened as his dad began relating to him stories of him as a kid. Stories he did not recall himself. Sam wanted to keep listening but his body was so fatigued. Sam slowly drifted off to sleep in the comforting arms of his dad.

William detected the change in breathing and how Sam leaned more heavily onto his chest. He stopped whispering and stilled his hand on Samuel's head. It felt good to know that he had helped Samuel relax and control the pain enough so that he had drifted off to sleep. With any luck Samuel would not have another coughing fit and remain asleep until they reached the hospital.


	23. Arrival, Sorry, Dumb Mel, Dread & SamSam

**Arrival, Sorry, Dumb Mel, Dread & Sam Sam**

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – Waiting Area**_

Lance brought the SUV to a controlled stop just outside the hospital. He had driven as fast as safely possible. They had been relieved when Blaze said they had rescued Sam.

He was glad when Sean said he would be the one to stay with Cameo and wait for Charlie team. Lance wanted to get to the hospital to check on his TL quickly. He felt the weight of guilt because it was Joseph's girlfriend that put all this in motion and harmed Sam.

As he put the SUV in park and reached to turn off the ignition he noticed that Ed was already exiting the vehicle. Lance could see the tight tension in Ed's face. Lance had learned that the original Team One was more than a team, they considered each other family. Lance hoped that Team Three would develop that type of connection, but he knew that was rare and might not happen.

Ed was opening the door even as Lance slowed down. He was out the door before the SUV was turned off and racing into the hospital. Ed was not entirely sure if they had arrived before or after Sam. But if he was a betting man he would have to say before because there were no other vehicles out front.

He located the nurse and realized it was the same one that did not speak any English. He would not get any information from her so he started to head into the ER area when another nurse stepped out of the ER area.

The nurse saw the police officer and put a hand up in the universal sign of halt. Then she said "Stop. The constable has not arrived yet and you are not allowed in the ER treatment area. Please have a seat in the waiting room."

"You speak English, that's good. Have you heard from them? Are they in the air yet?" Ed asked with relief at being able to communicate.

Charlotte Peltier nodded then said "Dr. Chasseur called me in from Saint-Félicien since all the other nurses speak only French. He did not want a language barrier to cause any issues with the care of your colleague. We were notified a little bit ago that they were just about to land. The ambulance will whisk him here shortly."

Ed nodded "Thanks." He paced in the waiting area unable to sit down.

Lance found Ed pacing and asked "Is Sam here yet?"

"No but shortly. It must have taken them a long time to make that hike to the helicopter" Ed replied as all kinds of scenarios played in his head as to why he was able to beat them here.

Activity at the ER entrance interrupted his thoughts as a gurney was pushed in. Ed would know that blonde hair anywhere. The fact that the General, Blaze, Spike, Wordy, Zach, Mark, Jeff and Drake were with the gurney, only solidified that it was Sam.

Ed took a step forward and got his first look at Sam. It was not good. Damn.

William followed the gurney into the ER treatment area disregarding the nurse's instructions. But all the other men stopped in the waiting room.

Zach looked at his uncle and said "I don't want to go but …"

Mark patted his shoulder "I know. It is okay. Sam would want you to do your job. He knows you are here. There is nothing we can do except wait."

Jeff added "And the faster you go the faster you can be back here and then go get Jules. Sam will need her after what he went through. She comforts him just by being near him."

He then put his arm around his cousin's shoulder and said "I'll go with you Zach. We'll be back in no time."

Mark watched his son head out with his nephew. It was nice of Jeff to go with Zach. Neither wanted to leave he was sure but both knew that duty called and there was nothing they could do here except wait.

He wandered to the nurse's station and asked in French where he could find coffee. Years ago, when Sam was only six and treated in this same hospital, Mark had been embarrassed that William had to translate for him. Languages were not his thing and he had only learned the very basics for French when he became an officer in the Army.

If William had not joined them for the last week he would have been at a complete loss to communicate with the doctors when Sam got Q fever. When they got home, Mark had ensured that the studied hard and gained fluency in French. William had helped him with that. Then William had tried to get him to learn other languages but Mark was just not good at languages so it was a lost cause.

Mark got the answer to where coffee could be found and then asked Drake if he would help him get coffees for everyone. They headed out and across the street to a local coffee shop the nurse suggested because she said that the coffee brewed at the hospital could kill his taste buds.

Ed had approached Wordy and Spike and asked "How is Sam?"

Spike's face was beacon of concern "His lung collapsed. That's why it took so long to get here. Drake was able to do some emergency procedure that helped Sam breathe. It's bad Ed. Bad."

Wordy looked at Ed and said "Broken rib, possible internal bleeding and beat to hell. On top of that he is sick. Sick like when he had bronchitis. How the hell he hung onto that bush when they went over the cliff, I cannot fathom."

Ed's brows arched up "He went over the cliff? Cameo didn't mention that."

Spike sat down in one of the chairs feeling utterly exhausted. His knee bounced slowly as it always did when he was anxious. He looked at Ed "He sounds worse than when his lungs were damaged. He's burning up and his coughing is so weak."

Wordy took a seat too as all the adrenaline that had been keeping him going drained away. He leaned back on the wall and closed his eyes. He was worried about Sam and he wanted to get to Shel too. Hopefully he would hear something about Sam before he had to leave.

He was grateful to the General for arranging quick transportation for him and Blaze to get to their wives. It was nice of Mike Galloway to offer to fly him from Ottawa to Toronto so that he did not have to wait until Zach got back to La Dore to fly him to Toronto.

Ed looked at Wordy and said "You should call Sophie to get an update on Shel."

Wordy pulled out his phone as he said "Jules updated me a bit ago. Shel is in labor for real. The doctor was wrong about the Braxton-Hicks. The little one is coming."

Ed smiled "Life keeps going. I hope you get there in time."

"Me too" Wordy said. Then he added "But if I don't that is okay. Finding Sam was the priority."

Blaze closed his phone and had a huge smile on his face "Yes it was and we did that." Pointing to Wordy and himself he continued "Now our priorities are to get to our wives and babies. I trust the doctors to do what is necessary to pull Blondie through this latest battle. He will be surrounded by family. He is going to amaze us all again with how quickly he bounces back."

Ed grinned "Love the positive thinking."

Spike nodded and his knee quit bouncing. Blaze was right. This was Samtastic. He didn't know how not to pull through no matter how terrible the odds were.

* * *

 _ **Réserve Faunique Ashuapmushuan – Hike to Landing Area**_

Melpomene was tired, hungry, cold and itchy. The men walked too fast. She was breathing heavily and tripping over her feet, rocks, twigs and such as she was forced to keep pace. Not a damned one of these men reacted to her pleas for help and to slow down.

Yawls kept pace with the men but he was at the back of the group along with Winds. Abner's mind was thinking over everything Sam had told him about what a real man was. Could it be that simple he asked himself again and again? Sam said it was his choice. That what Plouffe did to him did not have to define him.

He was so very confused. Yawls looked at Winds, the man that they said killed Plouffe. He was walking close to him with a fair distance from the others. Abner quietly asked in a subdued voice "Did you really kill Plouffe?"

Winds was surprised by the question from Yawls. "Yes" he answered simply.

"But you stopped me from killing him in the Colonel's office" Abner said and then asked "Why?"

Winds blew out a breath and then said "If I had known what he was doing to Blondie at the time, I might have helped you. But I didn't. I had to take the lethal shot when he tried to kill the General."

Abner nodded "Yankee died because of me. Plouffe tricked me into giving information. Plouffe was a despicable, evil man. I thought Sam was my enemy. Melpomene said that I had to kill Sam to get my manhood back. I saw Sam's scars. Plouffe hurt him a lot. Just like me."

Winds took a deep breath in and released it very slowly trying to quell his anger as he recalled just how much Plouffe hurt Blondie. He answered "Yes he did."

His voice was soft when he said "Sam said that Plouffe put him in the hands of the terrorist that did that to him. Sam said that being raped by those terrorists did not take his manhood away. Sam said that no one could take that from him that it was his choices that made him a real man. What do you think? Did Plouffe raping me take my manhood? I'm so confused."

Winds blanched. What the hell was Yawls saying? The terrorists raped Blondie? Oh god. He asked, needing to clarify "Are you saying that Blondie told you he was raped by the terrorist that held him captive?"

Yawls nodded "Yeah that is what he said. When he told me that the only way I would heal was to tell someone what Plouffe did to me I finally told him. He told me he understood the feelings because he was molested at eleven. But I told him that wasn't the same because he was only a boy. Then he told me it happened several times when he was held captive."

"I think he might be right but I'm not sure. You don't think he was just lying to me do you?" Abner asked in a small voice.

Winds halted. He looked at Russ who was the nearest to him and called out "Take over a moment. I gotta …"

Russ nodded wondering what was up. He watched as Winds raced into the woods. Then he thought Winds needed to take a piss. Russ turned his attention to Yawls keeping a closer eye on him.

Stopping several hundred yards from the group Winds leaned against a tree and bent over. He puked. It didn't happen often; only once before. When Blondie shared what he went through at the hands of those inhumane bastards.

Winds clearly remembered Blondie saying that he had been threatened with rape by the bastards but that he had no recollection of it ever happening. Blondie had lied to them. He was trying to wrap his head around the fact that Blondie lied and that he had been raped.

Deep seeded anger rose in him and he wanted to punch something. Winds slammed his fist into a tree several times. Shit that hurt, Winds thought as he shook out his hand. He had bloodied the knuckles and may very well have broken a few fingers.

The anger he was feeling was not because Blondie lied. It was because it happened to him. No wonder Blondie had wanted to commit suicide. Everything he went through was horrific.

Then Winds slumped down to the ground. His mind landed on another theory. Maybe at the time Blondie could not face that it had happened and his mind had protected him by telling him that it didn't. Like blocking out a bad or traumatic memory.

But if that was the case, then when did Blondie remember? Maybe the whole Dupont thing had brought it back. Winds heard Russ call out to him. He needed to get back to the group.

Winds stood and recomposed himself. He headed back to the group and came up to Yawls and said quietly "No Blondie was not lying to you. But you need to keep what Blondie told you to yourself. I'm sure he told you in confidence. Blondie is right though. No one can take your manhood away. Others might force themselves on you but that is a reflection of them, not you."

Yawls nodded and said "I'm sorry I hurt Sam. Real sorry."

Winds looked at the man and saw the regret, confusion, sadness and pain in his eyes. He said "I believe you."

Yawls turned his gaze to the ground and continued to walk. He wondered what was gonna happen to him now. It would break his mother's heart if he went to prison. But he did the crime so that was probably where he was headed. Abner wished that Melpomene had never become his caretaker. She was as evil as Plouffe.

Melpomene tripped on another rock. She reached out to catch herself and ran into a sapling tree. She ran into it rather hard on the arm with the gunshot wound. Anger spiked as pain radiated through her arm.

Stupid tree Melpomene thought as she grabbed the sapling and pulled back on it trying to pull it out of the ground. Her hands slipped off and the sapling whipped forward and then back at her striking her in one eye. She shrieked obscenities as she put her hands to her eye and then kicked another slightly more robust tree that was at least four feet taller than her.

The tree shook with the force of the kick. Melpomene kicked it several more times taking out her frustration and anger. Melpomene really wanted to be kicking Yawls and Sam and the rest of these idiotic, arrogant, useless men. If she could just get her hands on a gun she would shoot them all.

Rollie watched Melpomene a few moments then said with a hint of amusement "You done hurting innocent trees?"

Melpomene stopped and glared at Rollie. She gave the tree a final hard kick. A beehive was dislodged from the tree and fell onto Melpomene's head. The hive burst open. Angry bees swarmed out of the hive. The honey in the hive coated Melpomene's hair.

As Melpomene screamed and swatted at the bees, she ran. Her foot hit slick moss and then she was tumbling down a small incline. She landed in a mud puddle at the bottom.

Derek and Rollie rushed down the incline to see if the prisoner was injured. Both shone their lights on her.

Melpomene was cussing a blue streak as she stood up. She was covered in mud. Her hair was covered in honey and mud and it now had twigs, leaves, pine needles and what appeared to be dried rabbit droppings stuck in it.

Derek asked "Did you injure yourself on that tumble?"

Melpomene was too angry to think ahead. She touched her hair and growled out "No but my hair. I need to find a stream and wash this out."

Rollie said "No streams around here. Since you are not hurt, you need to get moving again."

He then pointed in the direction they needed to head. Rollie was surprised that he remained professional and did not laugh his ass off at the mess in her hair. It seemed that Mother Nature got back at Mel for hurting poor innocent trees. Once Mel past him Rollie did let the grin appear on his face. God he couldn't wait to tell Sam what happened to this woman. Rollie briefly thought that she reaped what she sowed.

Melpomene had stomped off in the direction she was directed. As she walked she kicked herself for not thinking on her feet. She should have played up a foot injury. If she had then one of these men would have had to carry her. She seethed as she scratched herself again then tried to wipe some of the mud off her face.

That was when she noticed she had only three nails left; one on her left ring finger and two on the other hand on her pinky and middle finger. She could not wait to get to the hospital. Surely they would give her a bath, wash her hair, have something decent for her to wear and feed her too.

* * *

 _ **Base Airfield – Ottawa**_

Jules glanced at Sadie who was now thankfully snoozing heavily in her infant carseat carrier. Apollo and Pawn had driven her here and carried her bags so she only had to carry Sadie. The guys had been so good to her and Sadie.

She was sitting in a small waiting area. When Zach landed he would come and get her from here after he refueled. Jules was glad Zach would be here shortly because waiting to be near Sam was driving her nuts. Her sense of dread was increasing not decreasing. She needed to be close to Sam.

Pawn entered the waiting area with Apollo and the rest of the guys from Mason's unit. He stepped up to Jules and said "We have a little something for Sadie."

Jules looked up and asked "What would that be?"

Pawn brought his hand from behind his back as he said "The noise in the helicopter is very loud. I was worried it might damage Sadie's little ears. So the guys all pitched in to get these for Sadie."

Jules looked at what was in Pawn's hand. She smiled broadly as she took a pair of pink Baby Banz Infant Hearing Protection Earmuffs from Pawn.

Pawn said "They have a category four rating so they will protect Sadie's ears from the potentially harmful noise of the helicopter."

Apollo stepped forward and grinned "And with Mommy and Daddy both being snipers they will work if you two ever take her to the gun range with you. They should fit her until she is about two."

Jules was very touched at their thoughtfulness. She stood up and then hugged and thanked each one of the guys. Then she went to Sadie and very gently put them on her. Sadie stayed asleep. Jules then made all the guys gather around Sadie and she snapped a photo.

"Sam has got to see this. Thank you again. I truly appreciate everything you have done" Jules said.

Apollo replied "We know Blondie would do this for anyone of us in a heartbeat. We take care of our own and even though Blondie is no longer in JTF2, he will always be one of us. We will always have his back and yours and Sadie's too."

Jules was moved to tears and wiped at her eyes quickly. As she did so the door to the waiting room opened. She turned to see if it was Zach. Her mouth dropped open but then she moved quickly to the door and into his arms.

Greg embraced Jules for several moments.

Jules finally pulled back and said "How did you get here?"

Adam entered the room hearing Jules' question and he answered "Uncle Will sent me to pick him up."

Greg nodded "Adam showed up about an hour after Wordy contacted us. Apparently the General felt you could use some support."

The door opened again and a lady entered.

Jules thought she looked very familiar.

Greg turned and said "Dr. Larsson, this is Jules Callaghan. I'm not sure if you two remember each other."

Jules reflexively corrected "Jules Braddock now. I remember you. You were Sam's pulmonologist when his lungs were damaged."

Eva Larsson said with a smile "Yes I was. I remember you too Jules. You were the only female on the SRU team. A belated congratulations on your wedding and the birth of your daughter."

The dread that had been growing solidified in Jules stomach. Dr. Larsson was here. She turned to the Boss and asked "Are Sam's lungs compromised? Is that what Wordy was leaving out?"

She covered her mouth as tears sprouted in her eyes "That's why the General thought I would need support. How bad is Sam? Tell me the truth."

Eva explained calmly "I've been in contact with the doctor treating Sam. It is very serious. It is possible that Sam will need to be put on a ventilator. They are keeping a very close watch on him."

At the look of concern on Jules' face, Dr. Larsson continued "We will try to avoid that but with his broken rib and the congestion in his lungs Sam is having a very difficult time breathing. His coughing is ineffective due to his weakened state and the pain it causes him. His lung collapsed once when one of the weak spots from his prior injury burst. We are worried that might happen again."

Jules asked "Can you do that pain block thing again?"

Dr. Larsson said "It depends on several factors. When I get there I will make a proper assessment and determine the best course of action to help Sam."

Greg put his arm around Jules' shoulders and pulled her close "We will get him through this again. Sam recovered once. He can do it again."

Adam's expression was serious as he said "Even if we all have to do a repeat of JSTF Recovery."

Jules leaned into Greg needing a little support. She was so glad he was here.

The door opened again and Blaze, Mike Galloway and Wordy entered.

Adam turned to Mike and said "The plane is all fueled and ready for you and Wordy."

Mike nodded "Thanks Adam. Glad to see you got licensed in more than just fighter jets."

Adam grimaced "Had too. Ever since Zach joined Special Forces, he's not in country a lot. So the family looks to me to help in the flight department. Besides, can't have my little brother lording over me all the types of planes and helos he can fly."

Galloway grinned "You got a hell of a lot of catching up to do then Adam. Zach can fly damned near anything."

"Yeah, yeah, don't remind me. Zach does that often enough" Adam groused. But then Adam whispered "Don't tell him but Zach makes me damned proud. That kid is a natural. I wish more of my fighter pilot trainees were like him."

While Mike and Adam were talking Wordy had headed straight for Jules and enfolded her in a hug. After a bit he said "Sam will get through this. I'm sorry I didn't tell you everything but I wanted to make sure that Greg was here before you found out how bad it was."

"I understand Wordy" Jules said. Then she smiled and said "Now you need to get home. You have a little one about to enter the world. You will call and tell me if it is a little girl or boy. Right?"

Wordy grinned "Of course." Then he cupped Jules' face and said "He will get through this. We all know how tough Sam is. He stayed alive this long. He swayed Yawls to his side. He did good. So he is not giving up. He will fight. He will fight for you and Sadie."

Jules hugged Wordy again as she said "I know he will."

Blaze came forward and hugged Jules quickly and then said "Blondie needs to see you so you need to get going."

She responded "Lizzy needs to see you so you need to get going. Little Nathan is waiting to be born until his daddy is there."

Jules looked at both the expectant fathers and said "Thank you both for finding Sam. Now go be with your wives and I'll go to my husband."

Blaze kissed Jules' cheek and then turned and tapped Apollo "Give me a ride to the hospital."

Apollo nodded and the rest of Mason's team followed Blaze and Apollo out of the room. Then Mike and Wordy headed off to the plane which was prepared and waiting for them.

Greg turned and looked at Sadie. She was dressed in comfy gray pants with black footies and a black jacket over a pink shirt. He saw the Pink earmuff and smiled. Greg asked "What is Sadie wearing?"

Jules grinned and said "Mason's unit got those for her for the helicopter flight. They are special ear protection for infants. Apollo said they will work if Sam and I want to take Sadie to the gun range too."

Chuckling Greg said "Hmmm I think I see a little SRU sniper in the making. I wonder if they make baby Remi's?"

"They don't. Sam already checked" Jules quipped.

Greg and Adam chuckled.

Zach opened the door to the waiting room and called out "I'm ready to go."

Adam asked "Jeff with you?"

Zach shook his head "No, he stayed in La Dore. There was no sense in him coming with me, Mike, Wordy and Blaze kept me company on the flight here and I have you all for the flight back."

Adam nodded then he and Greg picked up Jules' and Sadie's bags. Jules picked up Sadie in her carseat. Then everyone followed Zach out to the waiting helicopter.

After Adam assisted Dr. Larsson in latching her harness he handed out ear protection and communication headsets to Jules, Greg and Eva. Then Adam joined Zach in the cockpit of the helo. He would try to pick up pointers on flying this bird from his brother. Partially because it was a learning opportunity but mostly it would be a distraction from worrying about Sam.

Jules secured Sadie's carseat in one of the harnesses and then sat next to her and secured herself. The Boss was seated on the other side of Sadie. Dr. Larsson was across from them.

As she put on the ear protection and communication headset, Jules thought that not many infants ever got to ride in an Army helicopter. She wished whole-heartedly that Sadie didn't have to ride in one because that would have meant that Sam was okay. But he wasn't okay.

Sam's lungs were compromised badly enough that the General had contacted Sam's pulmonologist. Jules took a deep breath and slowly let it out as she tried to think positively. Sam was getting the best care possible and he was strong.

Jules needed to be strong for him too.

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – ER Treatment Area**_

Charlotte Peltier was still in shock at seeing Sam. They had lost touch so long ago. Never in her wildest dreams did she ever think she would meet Sam like this. It broke her heart to see the condition he was in.

She came back into the room with another bag of saline to attach. Dr. Chasseur was pumping him full of fluids wanting there to be enough fluid in his system to loosen the thick mucus that had settled into Sam's lungs.

William stood near Samuel's bed holding his hand. He was glad he had contacted Dr. Larsson. It hurt watching Samuel struggle for every single shallow breath he took in. Samuel was fading in and out of consciousness and was not really aware of his surroundings.

Samuel had had a terrible coughing fit just before they landed. For a moment Drake had thought that Samuel's other lung had collapsed. But then Samuel had taken a gasping breath in. Since then he struggled mightily for every single breath. He was fighting hard and the pain lines were etched deeply in Samuel's face.

But with how hard he was struggling he was weakening. Dr. Chasseur was watching closely and was ready to put Samuel on a ventilator if necessary.

William watched the petite nurse work. She was efficient but she had a shocked and concerned look on her face. He watched as she got a basin of water and a washcloth and began bathing Samuel's face with cool water to help bring down his fever.

He had watched her earlier gently bathe his entire body to remove the grime and then treat his myriad of small knife cuts and the long one too. Luckily they were all superficial. Then she had cleaned and dressed the second degree burns on his chest and back.

William said "I can see you really care about your patients."

"Yes Sir I do. But he is special" Charlotte stated.

"I have to agree with you there. My son is a special man" William stated.

Charlotte stared at the General. She had been so focused on caring for Sam that she had not made the connection even though there was a name badge that clearly said Braddock on the General's tactical uniform.

She had never pressed Sam Sam for details but she always thought it was weird he called his dad General. She shared "I knew Sam in high school. We dated for a bit. But we lost touch when I went abroad to study and Sam went to the police academy."

William looked closely at the woman. Recognition lit his face "You are Charlie aren't you?"

Charlotte was stunned "How do you know that?"

"Forgive me for blurting that out. Sam's mother kept me apprised of things when he lived in Toronto. But I also ended up getting a phone call from your father. Pastor Noble called to ask me about Samuel's character before he consented to you and Samuel dating" William shared.

Charlie's mouth dropped open "My dad did that?"

William shrugged and grinned "Yes he did. He cares a lot for you and wanted to ensure you were safe dating my son."

Wiping the cool cloth over Sam's face again Charlie looked at Sam a moment and then back at the General "Sam Sam was the kindest boy I knew. Amazing at math. Helped me pass."

Charlie returned her eyes to Sam and moved the cool cloth to his chest and wiped it down. The scars were evidence that Sam suffered through something horrible. Her voice timorous she asked "What happened to him?"

Drawing in a deep breath William held it for a count of four then slowly let it out. He answered "Too much."

Her movements were gentle and efficient as she continued to wipe Sam down. They had slowly warmed him once he got to the hospital. The fever had a lot to do with that. But now the fever was increasing and they needed to cool him.

Charlie let the General's cryptic response roll around in her head. Part of her wanted to know specifics. But Charlie realized it was not her place to push for more information. So she continued to cool him and did not ask further questions.

Sam was in a semiconscious state. He felt his body moving in and out of a fog that descended on his mind. He was hot then cold and he hurt constantly. Everytime the pain spiked his body took him down into the dark. He fought his way up every time.

He was fighting to come back up again. His strength was waning. Then a coughing fit racked Sam again. He felt two sets of arms helping him to sit up during the fit. When it was done Sam managed to crack his eyes open and they landed on his dad.

Sam needed Jules. He had to see her and Sadie. He was fighting but he didn't know how much he had left in him. Sam managed to get out "Dad … Jules?"

William leaned close "Jules and Sadie are on their way now son. She will be here shortly. Keep fighting son. Jules will be here soon."

Charlie realized something must have changed in Sam's relationship with his father. Never had she ever heard him refer to his father as dad.

Sam took a shaky breath in as his eyes closed and he faded out again.

"He keeps asking for Jules. Who is she?" Charlie asked.

William looked at the nurse and answered "Jules is Sam's wife. Sadie is their daughter."

Charlie smiled "I'm glad he has family now. I bet he is a good husband and father. Rest assured we will do everything in our power to help Sam Sam."

Another nurse came into the room with a weary look on her face and said "Charlotte, pouvez-vous me donner une main avec le patient dans la salle six? Elle me combat. Je dois lui couper les cheveux parce que je ne peux pas obtenir toutes les choses hors de lui et parce qu'elle avait l'éruption du lierre de poison sur le dessus de sa tête."  
(Charlotte can you please give me a hand with the patient in room six? She is fighting me. I have to cut off her hair because I cannot get all the stuff out of it and because she has poison ivy rash on the top of her head.)

William reached for the cloth and said "I'll cool Samuel while you go help the other nurse. If you need additional assistance to restrain Ms. Tocci, anyone of the JTF2 or SRU men could give you a hand."

Charlie gave him the cloth and said "I can handle one unruly female patient. Shout if you need anything. I'll be just down the hall. I won't be long."

Looking at Sam, Charlie whispered "Sam Sam you be good and keep breathing. I'll be back in a bit."


	24. Waiting Room, Blind Barber & Oh Sam!

**Waiting Room, Blind Barber & Oh Sam! **

* * *

_**La Dore Hospital – Waiting Area**_

Jules strode in with Sadie followed by Greg, Dr. Larsson, Zach and Adam. She looked at the assembled group of people in the waiting room. There were more people than seats. Every last one of them looked thoroughly exhausted.

Her eyes landed on Ed. Jules asked with concern "Ed what happened to you?"

Ed turned and then strode quickly to Jules "Nothing big."

Spike smirked "Just a house came down around us. One punch from Mason is all it took."

Mark strode forward and reached out for Sadie "Jules you need to go to Sam. We'll watch Sadie. William is with Sam right now."

Jules let Mark take Sadie and took one last look at all the men. She wondered briefly where Leah was. Then her mind shifted to Sam and she quickly followed Dr. Larsson towards the ER treatment area.

A nurse tried to stop them but the Eva quickly spoke to her in French and told her who she was and that Jules was Sam's wife. The nurse let them into the treatment area and then resumed her guard on the door. All the men had tried one after another to gain access. But they needed to wait in the waiting room. They had procedures that needed to be followed. None of them were direct family except Sam's father and he was already with Sam.

Ed ran his hand over the back of his neck "I'm glad you were able to come, Greg. Jules is going to need us."

Greg said "I know. The General called and told me how bad it is. Have you gotten an update recently?"

Spike shook his head "No. But at least it is quiet now."

"What do you mean?" Greg asked.

Rollie answered "Ms. Tocci has been screaming her head off. A nurse finally came and asked if Leah would come into the room and act as a guard. Leah had to cuff her to the bed because she was assaulting the nurses. Leah is keeping watch right now."

Greg looked around and then asked "Where are Winds and Mason?"

Ed responded "They are guarding Yawls. Although, Yawls has been quiet and docile according to Winds from the time they pulled him up from the cliff."

Looking about Greg asked "Coffee?"

Lance popped up and offered "I'll go get it. Anyone else need a refill?"

After several of the guys raised their hands, Phil stood up from his place on the floor "I'll go with you."

Greg looked at Ed and asked "What really happened to your arm?"

Ed grinned "Spike wasn't joking. It only took one punch from Mason and part of the house collapsed into the basement. Just a small shard of wood. Nothing big."

Greg arched a brow "I don't envy you the paperwork that is gonna entail."

Rolling his shoulders to relieve some of the built up tension Ed responded "Yeah, there will be quite a lot of it. Two Provinces involved and the military. I should probably give Holleran a call soon and see who has jurisdiction and who will take custody of Yawls and Tocci when they are ready to travel."

Spike's mouth twisted into a wicked amused smile "I doubt Tocci is gonna be traveling any time soon."

Greg pulled his eyes together and questioned "Spike?"

Humor laced Spike's words as his eyes sparkled with devilment "She was a mess when she arrived. Covered in poison ivy rash and mud and wearing nothing but a makeshift poncho of black plastic. Rollie said that a beehive dropped on her head when she kicked a tree in anger and then she tumbled down an incline and everything in her path got stuck in her hair. I swear I saw rabbit poop stuck in it."

"Interesting" Greg replied with a small grin as he leaned on his cane.

Spike stood up and said "Take my seat Boss."

Greg shook his head "No you look exhausted Spike."

Shrugging Spike remarked "So do you. I'll just sit on the floor though."

Acquiescing Greg took a seat. He glanced over at Mark and Scott. They had Sadie out of her car seat and Scott cradled her close and rocked her gently. Greg leaned back and rested for now. He knew that he needed a bit of rest so he could be able to be there for Jules in the wee hours of the morning.

Spike sat on the floor and leaned up against the wall. He wished they would get an update on Sam soon. Maybe now that Jules was here the General would come out and give them an update. Spike closed his eyes thinking that waiting sucked but it was better than if they were still looking for Sam.

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – ER Treatment Area Hallway**_

Charlotte Peltier saw two women enter the treatment area with one of the local nurses named Pauline as she stepped out of Ms. Tocci's room. She turned to Leah who was just inside the room and said "Thank you for your help Leah."

Leah nodded "Glad I could help."

Charlie glanced back to the patient and had to bite her lower lip to stop the grin that wanted to form on her face. Tocci had fought them tooth and nail to keep her hair. Because of that, Melpomene now looked like she had been attacked by a blind barber. She had chunks of hair and bald spots over her entire head.

If Melpomene had not fought so much, Nurse Sylvania could have made a decent attempt at trimming her hair. But the foul mouth on the woman would not stop as Melpomene lashed out at both of them with her three fake claws every time they attempted to cut out the items stuck in her hair. After Sylvania was scratched on the cheek she no longer cared if she trimmed it nicely or not. Charlie was glad that the female SRU officer cuffed Ms. Tocci to the bed before she could do real damage to either of them.

Charlie dismissed the ill-mannered, foul-mouthed woman from her mind and hurried back to Sam's room. She had been gone too long. Charlie knew that Dr. Chasseur was with Sam Sam but she wanted to be the one to care for him. It was so sad that he was in such bad shape and that vulgar woman was responsible for his condition.

As Leah guarded the room, she thought that the poor nurses had one heck of a time until she had cuffed Tocci. Leah knew she was selected to be the one to restrain Melpomene to maintain some semblance of dignity for Tocci seeing that she was nude. The woman was covered in poison ivy rash from her thighs to the top of her head and they could not put a gown on her until after they treated her. But they had to clean her up before they could do that. So they only covered her with a light sheet after she was cuffed.

Leah glanced out the door when she heard hurriedly approaching footsteps. She saw Jules and called out "Jules."

Jules stopped at the open door at the sound of Leah's voice. As Dr. Larsson continued down the hall Jules wondered what Leah was doing back here. Her voice held a note of query "Leah?"

Then Jules' eyes landed on the person in the treatment bed. Her eyes widened. Damn! Was that Tocci?

Leah quickly stepped outside the door and hugged Jules "I'm so glad you are here. Sam needs you."

Melpomene saw Jules' and yelled "I should have killed that little brat and you when I had the chance." She unsuccessfully tried to reach to itch herself, the metal cuffs clanking on the metal bars of the bed as she continued "This is all Sam's fault. He got the spot that Joseph was supposed to get. Yawls should have just killed him in the parking lot of the Goose."

Jules only looked for a moment then turned her back on the woman. That ugly woman was not worth Jules' time or breath. Melpomene would be going to jail for what she did to Sam, for the credit fraud and for manipulating Yawls. Jules did not need to give her a second thought.

What Jules needed to focus on right now was Sam. Jules knew to her core that Sam was in trouble and desperately needed her. It was a matter of life and death, his life and his death.

Jules quickly followed the path that Dr. Larsson had taken down the hall. She found the room Eva had turned into. She took a deep breath and steadied her nerves.

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – ER Treatment Area – Sam's Room**_

Jules stepped into the room and froze. She was not quite prepared for what she witnessed before her.

"Oh Sam!" escaped softly as Jules stood at the entrance of the room taking in the sight.

Sam's very bruised and beaten body was being held upright by his dad and the nurse that had just come out of the other room. Sam was coughing very weakly and was struggling for each breath in between coughs. Even though her eyes remained on Sam her peripheral vision noted that Dr. Larsson was conferring with another doctor looking at x-rays.

Jules unfroze and moved quickly to Sam's side. She stood next to William and reached out for Sam.

"Sam I'm here love. I'm here" Jules said as her hand caressed the side of his colorful face.

As the coughing fit subsided, William and Charlie lowered Sam back to the bed. William then stepped back a little to allow Jules to move in closer. He was so glad Jules was finally here. Samuel was getting so weak it was scaring him.

Jules got very close to Sam and as she stroked his hair she said "Hey soldier. I'm here and so is Sadie. We are going to pull you through this my love."

Sam heard Jules. She was here. Using the last of his strength; the tiny reserve he had held back just for Jules, Sam managed to crack his eyes open half way.

Breathing was too difficult now. He had fought as hard as he could. It was just too hard now.

Sam saw her beautiful brown eyes one last time. That was what he was hanging on for. Sam needed to say goodbye. He needed Jules to know he fought as hard as he could but sadly in the end it wasn't enough.

Two breathless words was all Sam managed to whisper "I fought." He wanted to say more but could not.

Sam's eyes held Jules' eyes for a moment. His eyes tried to convey how much he loved Jules and how sorry he was that he would not be there for his girls before they slipped closed.

Jules had read in that moment that Sam was saying goodbye. He told her he had fought. Sam was slipping away from her. She could not allow that. He had to continue to fight.

She cried out "Sam you have to keep fighting. Fight. You cannot say goodbye. Sam you cannot go. You have to hear Sadie call you dada."

Monitor alarms started to ring as Jules urgently called out "Sam. Sam! SAM!"

Jules was firmly pulled back from the bed by the General as the doctors rushed to Sam. She stood rooted in place as she watched them pull the oxygen mask off Sam's face. Then his bed was lowered flat in one swift motion by the nurse and she tilted Sam's head back. Dr. Larsson gave rapid orders and they were followed by the nurse and other doctor.

William held Jules' close to him and his arms were securely around Jules lending support if she needed it as he watched Dr. Chasseur and Dr. Larsson intubate Samuel. They had hoped not to do that. But Samuel had fought so long and so hard for every breath for hours.

Jules' eyes filled with tears but she could not turn away. She watched as the tube was fed down Sam's throat. She watched as they attached it to a machine. She watched as medication was added to his IV line. She watched. That was all she could do.

She took a tentative step forward after several minutes. The whir and hiss of the ventilator was the only sound in the room as the doctors adjusted the machine and checked Sam's vital signs. The sound of the automatic blood pressure cuff startled Jules. Her second tentative step was met with resistance.

William softly said "Jules let them have space to work."

The desire to get to Sam, to touch him, overwhelmed her and Jules broke free of the General.

Jules stood at the foot of the bed and laid her hand on Sam's shin. She whispered fervently "Fight my love, fight. Come back to me."

A few moments later and Dr. Larsson turned to the General and to Jules and reported "Sam is sedated and the ventilator has taken over breathing for him."

Jules paled and William stepped forward and put his arm around her offering support. Jules gripped the bed and leaned into William needing support as her legs felt a bit wobbly.

Eva continued "This is the best course of action Jules. Sam was too weak to breathe on his own. His lungs are too congested and the broken rib is preventing him from taking deep breaths."

Dr. Chasseur added "Sam will be able to rest now. He will not have to struggle for every breath and his body can begin to heal. The antibiotics can begin to work."

Looking to Jules, Dr. Larsson informed her "The hospital is equipped for me to do the nerve block. While Sam is sedated Dr. Chasseur will go in and repair his rib."

Mathieu explained the procedure "I will be using a newer surgical procedure called the Synthes Rib Matrix that takes about two hours. It will speed up the healing process and alleviate Sam's pain. During the surgery I will make a small incision and insert a titanium metal plate shaped to fit the anatomical contours of the rib. The plate is about half an inch wide and the one I will use on Sam is three inches long. Screws will be used to attach the plate to the bone. The plate will be left in Sam's body forever. There is no need for a second surgery to remove it."

Dr. Chasseur then added "With this procedure, pain tends to last only days rather than weeks or months. So this will help with treating the pneumonia. Sam will be able to cough and take deep breaths without fear of puncturing his lung or with significant pain."

Jules nodded and said "Two hours?"

Eva said "Yes for the surgery. But, I will do the nerve block procedure first so it will take a bit longer than that. The nerve block will also help once Sam wakes. Pain management will be key to helping him recover proper lung functioning."

William asked "How long will Samuel be on the ventilator?"

Dr. Larsson answered "That depends on how his lungs respond. But initially, I will say at least two or three days. From the look of his injuries his body has been sorely abused and needs a rest. I know a ventilator is a scary thought but it is truly in Sam's best interest at the moment."

"Can I have a moment alone with Sam before you take him to surgery?" Jules asked as she wiped her eyes removing the gathered, unshed tears.

The doctors nodded and then left along with Charlie and William.

William headed out to the waiting room to update everyone waiting. He had not liked leaving them in the dark but he had not wanted to leave Samuel's side to update them. William was sure they would all understand.

Jules went close to Sam and picked up his left hand. She toyed with Sam's wedding band a moment. Then she brought his hand to her mouth and kissed his ring finger. She lowered his hand but did not let go as her other hand moved to his face.

Her fingers lightly traced Sam's eyebrows and then down his cheeks and across his bruised jaw. Jules leaned down and gently kissed Sam's cheek. She wished she could kiss his lips but the tubing was in the way.

Jules pulled back and laid her hand over Sam's heart as she whispered "My love you fought valiantly. You have earned a rest. I will be here and keeping watch. Let us fight for you now. Sleep well my love. When it is time to wake you, I promise to wake you with a kiss. When you wake Sadie has a few surprises for you."

She carded through his hair lightly noting that his brow was no longer furrowed in pain. She squeezed his hand once more.

Charlie peeked in and gently said "We need to take Sam Sam to surgery now."

Jules turned and looked at the nurse "Sam Sam?"

Charlie stepped into the room and came to the opposite side of the bed. As she raised the pole on the bed and transferred the saline bag to it Charlie said "Sorry, old habit. It's what I called Sam in high school. I'm Charlotte Peltier, just call me Charlie. You must be Jules."

Jules nodded as she gently squeezed Sam's hand again not wanting to let go just yet.

Charlie's eyes gleamed and her mouth curved into a smile "You are a lucky woman Jules. Sam Sam is a gentle and kind man. I'm so glad he found someone to love. I hear you two have a daughter too."

"Sadie, she's a daddy's girl" Jules responded, her gaze never leaving Sam. Then what Charlie said earlier finally registered "You knew Sam in high school?"

Charlie nodded "Yes. He was my first kiss and my first boyfriend. He was special. Sam Sam was also observant and stepped aside when he saw that Jett and I were meant to be together. My husband Jett will be sad to hear that Sam Sam is hurt. We all lost touch so long ago. It will be nice when Sam is feeling better to reconnect."

She then stepped on the locking mechanism on the wheels and started to move Sam's bed. Charlie stopped a moment and said "We'll take very good care of Sam. I promise. You can walk with us to the OR room if you want."

Jules held onto Sam's hand all the way to the OR. Then she stood there for a moment just watching them prep Sam. Jules could not bear to watch a surgery so she finally turned and headed out to the waiting room.

.

* * *

 _ **AN:** Today might be a two chapter posted day. I have a completely free Saturday so I might be able to knock out the next chapter quickly._


	25. Babies

**Babies**

* * *

 _ **Base Hospital – Ottawa**_

Blaze strode quickly down the corridor to the maternity ward. He hoped he had made it here in time. The last time he spoke with Lizzy the contractions had become regular and more frequent.

He found the room the nurse said was Lizzy's and did not break his stride as he pushed open the door. Lizzy was in mid contraction and her face was screwed up in pain and her eyes tightly closed. Blaze noted that her good friend Stewart was helping her breathe through the contraction.

Blaze came alongside the bed and saw Lizzy's death grip on Stewart's hand.

Stewart looked up and smiled "Thank goodness you are here. Lizzy has about squeezed my hand off."

Blaze reached out with one hand to grasp Lizzy's hand as his other hand gently brushed Lizzy's sweaty platinum blonde locks from her face "Lizzy I made it."

Lizzy clamped onto Blaze's hand as the intensity of the contraction crested and then began to ebb. She leaned back and opened her eyes. Relief and love shone in them "I'm glad you got here. Nathan decided he could not wait any more. I'm at nine centimeters."

Blaze leaned down and kissed his beautiful wife as he said "I got here as fast as I could."

Stewart shook out his hand trying to get blood back into it as Lizzy released it. He grinned and said "I'm just gonna go wait out in the waiting room now."

Lizzy turned to Stewart and said "Thank you for staying with me Stewie."

"Anything for you Lizzy." Then he looked at Blaze "How's Sam?"

Blaze answered "Blondie is hanging in there. He's a fighter. He's not gonna let this take him away from his girls."

Lizzy nodded and then began panting as another contraction started.

Stewart stepped back as Blaze took over helping Lizzy breathe through the contraction. As he stepped out of the room he overheard Blaze telling Lizzy how much he loved her. He thought again how glad he was that Lizzy found another man to love like she had loved her first husband. Lizzy deserved happiness.

Blaze helped Lizzy through the contraction and then another five of them. The nurse and doctor came in. The doctor checked Lizzy again and then said "Fully dilated. Time to push Lizzy."

Ten minutes of agonizing pushing with groaning was ended with the sound of a strong wail as Nathan made his presence known to the world.

Blaze cut the umbilical cord and then received a wet little baby in his hands. He beam brightly as he gazed down at his son in wonder.

He held him gently as he said "Let's go meet your mommy Nathan." Blaze then took Nathan to Lizzy and laid him on Lizzy's chest.

Lizzy's stroked his head as she gazed at her newest son. "He's perfect."

Blaze leaned down and kissed Lizzy "How could he not be with a beautiful mother like you. Thank you for my fifth son Lizzy."

Her eyes shifted to Blaze and she smiled. She was so lucky to have such a caring man as her husband. He had the biggest heart and was never shy about showing his love and care for those important to him.

Lizzy asked "Any ideas for a middle name?"

Blaze watched as the nurse came to take Nathan to clean him up. He watched and then turned to Lizzy and said tentatively "How about George?"

A quizzical look crossed her face and she asked "Why George?"

Blaze looked at Lizzy and said "We gave Sammy your father's name Niklas. I'd like to give Nathan the middle name of George to honor two people. My father's name was George and Yankee's real name was George too. Nathan will have a strong name being named after three strong men."

Lizzy's eyes glistened and she nodded "Yes that would be a very strong name. I like. So the little one is now Nathan George Blain."

Blaze kissed Lizzy solidly. Then the nurse appeared with Nathan wrapped in a blue blanket with a little blue stocking cap on his head. Blaze took his son in one arm and cradled him. He gazed down at his son and grinned.

He dug out his phone and handed it to the nurse as he leaned in close to Lizzy and asked "Would you please take a picture?"

The nurse smiled and took the phone. She snapped several photos then handed the phone back to Blaze. She loved working the maternity ward. She loved watching big strong soldiers melt when they held their babies for the first time. It made her smile because by the looks of this soldier he had come directly from the field and had made it just in time for the birth. She was happy for them.

Lizzy looked at Blaze and said "Honey, you look nearly done in. Have you slept at all in the past two days?"

Blaze took a close up photo of Nathan as he said "Sleep is overrated. But once you and Nathan are settled in a room I'll take a nap with you."

"So that means no" Lizzy translated.

Lifting his eyes to Lizzy, Blaze said softly "I couldn't sleep until my first son was rescued. Blondie needed me. We got to him just in time. Just like I got here in time."

Lizzy reached out for Blaze's hand and said "Okay. I understand but I'm holding you to taking that nap. Then in the morning you go home and shower, change and then pick up Ryan and Sammy so they can come meet their little brother."

Blaze nodded "Wilco." He then laid Nathan in Lizzy's arms and snapped another photo.

He then pulled up his text message and attached the close up of Nathan and added 'Introducing Nathan George Blain, healthy and as loud as his namesake. Lizzy doing well too. I'll call with details later in the morning'. Blaze sent the text off to Winds, Mason, Jim, Daphy and Jules.

* * *

 _ **St. Simon Hospital – Toronto**_

Wordy was met at the airport by Dean and Clark. Dean was holding a steaming cup of Timmy's coffee for him and Clark said they had a change of clothes for him in the car. They drove him straight to hospital and on the way told him that Allie, Holly, and Lilly were staying with Marina and that Winnie and Sophie were with Shel.

Dean and Clark peppered him with questions about Sam. Wordy told them some but not all of what happened. They were both eighteen and attending the Police Academy so he knew they were not little boys. But he felt it was not his place to tell Clark about his father's injury and he had no update on Sam to provide them.

As the car pulled up to the hospital entrance Wordy said "Thanks for picking me up, for the coffee and for the change of clothes. I'm sure your dads will call you with updates as soon as they know anything."

He slid out of the back seat grabbing the bag with the change of clothes as Clark said "If you need anything just call. Mom said Shel is in room 305."

Wordy nodded and then jogged into the hospital and directly to the elevators. He punched the number three button and then leaned back on the wall of the elevator. He was completely exhausted. The coffee the boys brought had helped a bit.

He shoved his hands in his pocket when he felt them shake a bit. Exhaustion was not good for his Parkinson's but he would go after Sam again in a heartbeat. Wordy squeezed his eyes shut and sent up a silent prayer that Sam would pull through.

The elevator dinged and the door opened. Wordy was about to step out when he realized it was the second floor. He was about to blow out a breath in frustration when he recognized who was getting on. He smiled "Heather."

Heather looked up from her clipboard. She recognized the voice before she recognized the person. Wordy was disheveled, covered in dried mud and he had dark circles under his eyes.

She stepped towards him and placed a hand on his arm "Wordy are you alright. You look like you are about to fall down. Heck you look like you fell down in mud."

Wordy realized then that no one had probably contacted Jim. He closed his eyes and said "Long story."

Then the door dinged again and it was the third floor. He held the door a moment as he said "I would tell you all about it but Shel is in labor. I just got here. Have Jim call Winds or Mason. One of them will tell Jim what happened."

Heather watched Wordy jog off down the hall. Her heart lurched. It had to do with Sam if Wordy said to call Winds or Mason. Then she wondered why not Blaze. Her destination forgotten, she stepped out of the elevator and followed Wordy as she pulled her phone out to call Jim.

Room 305 appeared and Wordy opened it slowly. He saw Shel on the bed with Sophie and Winnie seated in the chairs next to the bed.

Shel turned when she heard the door open. Her face lit with a smile "You made it."

Wordy came into the room and went directly to Shel as he asked "How are you doing?"

Shel quipped "Apparently better than you. Goodness Kev you look terrible."

"Yeah, I feel about how I look but that doesn't matter. You and the baby are what matters. How far along are you?" Wordy responded.

Taking Kevin's hand, Shel answered "I'm only five centimeters. There is a shower in the bathroom. You have time to take one and clean up a bit if you want. Clark brought the extra clothes for you didn't he?"

Wordy nodded "Yes he did."

Shel lightly chuckled "I'm not quite sure what they packed. They took Lilly with them to get your things."

Sophie stood up and said "How about I run and get you something to eat Wordy. You look like you could use something."

"Thanks Sophie that would be nice" Wordy answered feeling very hungry and unable to remember when he last ate. It was probably at the SRU station in Montreal.

Winnie asked "Have you heard anything more on Sam?"

Shaking his head, Wordy answered with more details than what he had shared with Dean and Clark "No. All I know is that he was having a very hard time breathing. They were talking about possibly putting him on a ventilator if things did not improve. It might be the best thing for him."

Shel bent over as a contraction seized her abdomen. Wordy held her hand and rubbed her lower back until the contraction eased.

"Go get your shower Wordy. Winnie can stay with me while you do that. It might be the last opportunity to get one for quite some time" Shel stated.

Wordy hesitated until Shel forced him to go indicating he was too dirty to hold a newborn.

Fifteen minutes later, refreshed from a warm shower and dressed in clean clothes Wordy stepped out of the bathroom and found not only Sophie and Shel but Heather in the room.

Heather looked to Wordy and said "I just got off the phone with Jim. He called Mason. Mason said that Sam is now on a ventilator and they have taken him into surgery to fix his broken rib. Jules was able to see Sam just before he got too weak to breathe on his own. The doctors said it was for the best and his body can rest and heal."

Moving towards Shel as he saw a contraction start, Wordy held off asking any questions while he helped Shel through the contraction. When it was over he looked at Heather and queried "Did Mason say how long Sam would be on the ventilator or how long until he can be moved home?"

"The doctors said it depends. Could be two to three days but … it depends on how his body reacts. No one has discussed when he will be moved home" Heather stated. Then she added "Mason said they are waiting for the RCMP to arrive later today to decide what to do with those two that took Sam. It is in federal jurisdiction Ed told him because it crossed province lines."

"I figured it would. I hope they throw the book at both of them. That woman was … well not something I'm comfortable saying in front of ladies" Wordy stated.

Sophie unwrapped one of the sandwiches she had gotten for Wordy and handed it to him. She grinned as she said "Eat. The main thing is that you guys found Sam and he is in hands of competent doctors."

Wordy nodded and took a bite of the sandwich. Even hospital food tasted good at this point.

Heather then smiled and said "On the good news front, Blaze and Lizzy welcomed little Nathan George Blain into the world about an hour ago. Mason told Jim that Blaze must have barely made it there in time."

She pulled out her phone and showed the picture of little Nathan and there were oo's and aw's.

The group talked for about an hour and made plans for sending baby gifts to Blaze and Lizzy as Wordy ate all three sandwiches and helped Shel through several contractions that were getting more intense and coming quicker.

After Shel had a really intense contraction, Sophie stood up and said "Winnie, Heather and I will leave you two alone now. We will make sure your girls are taken care of. You two just focus on that little baby that is about to be born."

Winnie said "Just call if you need anything. I'm off shift tomorrow. So I mean it, call me for any reason even if you just need me to grab you some coffee."

Shel smiled "Thanks for being here for me and taking care of the girls."

At the door Sophie looked back and said "Anytime. I'll be in the waiting area with Winnie if you need anything."

The door closed and Wordy and Shel were alone. He leaned down and kissed Shel. "How are you doing? Do you want the epidural?"

"I'm okay. No epidural. You look a bit better" Shel responded.

"Feel a bit better, at least cleaner and not hungry." Then Wordy chuckled and said "At least I did not have tons of honey and other stuff stuck in my hair and I'm not covered in poison ivy."

Shel breathed through another contraction with Wordy rubbing her back and when it subsided she asked "Who did that happen too?"

Wordy then related what happened to Melpomene and the reasons behind the abduction. Shel chuckled a few times.

"Karma. She got what she deserved. I cannot believe she thought she could live the life of ease on a constable's salary. That woman is seriously delusional. Especially when she thought that Sam did not deserve to be on Team Three."

"I hope she spends the rest of her life in prison. She's gonna have to live without all those spa days and …" Shel stopped as another harder contraction hit her. She screamed in pain this time.

Wordy pressed the call button. Shel's contractions were coming closer together and she was in a lot of pain. He asked again "Epidural?"

Shel's face was contorted in pain and she nodded yes.

The nurse came in and did a quick check then hurried out for the doctor.

Dr. Busch, Shelley OB/GYN, came in and did a quick check then he looked at Shelly and said "I'm sorry, too late for an epidural. You've gone from five to ten centimeters very quickly. This little one must know that Daddy is here now and wants to come out."

Over the course of the next thirty minutes Shel screamed as Wordy spoke comforting words trying to help anyway he could. He helped hold her up as she bore down with each contraction. This part of bringing a life into the world always was the worst for Wordy because he could not stand seeing Shel in pain. He wished she had taken the epidural earlier.

Wordy heard the soft cry as his baby was born. He looked at Shel and then kissed her as he said "You did great. Absolutely great sweetheart."

Dr. Busch sniped the umbilical cord and cleaned out the baby's mouth and nose then handed the baby to the nurse to clean up. He did all that because he knew that Shelley and Kevin wanted to see their baby at the same time and find out the gender together.

He stated "The baby is healthy."

The nurse did the PKU test and gently washed the little one off and wrapped the baby up in a blanket.

Shel took Kevin's hand and said "Which do you think it is, boy or girl?"

Wordy just smiled "Which ever it is, I have to tell you I'm ecstatic. I love you so much Shelley. You are my rock and the best Mother in all the world. Girl or boy it does not matter because he or she is already loved."

The nurse turned and Shel and Wordy both looked with anticipation. The baby was wrapped in a white blanket with a yellow and green paisley design. She placed the baby in Wordy's arms and smiled.

Shel and Wordy stared at their baby. The blanket was beautiful but gave them no clue as to the gender of their little one.

Wordy asked "Boy or girl?" as gently ran his thumb across his baby's cheek. He placed the bundle into Shelly's arms and then looked at the nurse expectantly.

The nurse grinned and she took a small pink knit cap and put it on the baby "It's a girl."

Wordy's face broke into a huge grin "A girl. She is so beautiful just like her mother and sisters. I'm a lucky, lucky man."

Shel smiled she knew not to bother asking if he was disappointed that it was not a boy. Kevin would never be disappointed. But she did ask "So what do we name her?"

Wordy said "I'd like to stay with a name that ends in ly sound, like your name and like we did for Lilly, Holly and Allie."

They made several suggestions to each other as the nurses assisted Shel in getting cleaned up and dressed in a fresh gown. None of the names were quite right. Shel drifted off to sleep after she was cleaned up and the bed changed with fresh sheets. Wordy liked the birthing suites because they did not need to move Shel to another room and the baby stayed with them in the room.

As Wordy held his fourth daughter and gazed into her blue eyes he smoothed down the blanket. He had called Sophie and told her that it was a girl and that Shel was sleeping. Sophie said she would go get the other girls in an hour because they should be awake by then.

Winnie and Sophie stopped in the room for a quick peek before they headed out to get the girls. Winnie brought Wordy coffee and a breakfast sandwich from the café. They offered a few names with ly sounds at the end and then headed out.

An hour and a half later three little girls bounded happily into the room ready to meet the baby. No one told them if it was a brother or sister. Each one hugged their mommy and then gathered around Daddy who was holding the baby.

Lilly asked "Can I hold the baby?"

Wordy nodded and said "Sit on the little couch."

Lilly sat down and Holly and Allie climbed up on either side of Lilly. Wordy carefully put the baby in Lilly's arms. He watched as his girls all greeted the baby.

Holly turned to her dad and asked "Is it a brother or a sister?"

Shel answered "You have a sister."

The girls all giggled with glee and Allie asked "What did you name her?"

Wordy crouched down in front of them and said "We haven't decided yet. We want a name that ends like your names end. Do you have any suggestions?"

The girls all started offering suggestions. Allie was toying with the blanket and said "Daddy I like this blanket it has a pretty, swirly, flowery pattern. Will the baby get to take it home?"

Shel answered "Probably not. But we can see if we can find a paisley blanket for her at the store."

Wordy looked at Shel and Shel looked at Wordy and they smiled at the same thought.

Allie pipped up and spoke exactly what Wordy and Shel were thinking "Can we call her Paisley? It pretty just like the blanket and it ends in ly."

Shel and Wordy nodded.

Wordy turned back to his four daughters and said "That is a grand idea Allie. How about you three give me some nice big smiles so I can take a picture?"

Then Wordy said "Say cheese."

Lilly shook her head and said "Say Paisley."

All three of them said Paisley as Wordy took several pictures. Then he selected one and sent a text message to everyone that said 'Our newest precious daughter, Paisley Wordsworth with our equally precious daughters Lilly, Holly and Allie. Mom and baby doing well. Details to follow later'.

Then Wordy sat next to his daughters as everyone oo'd and aw'd over Paisley. Wordy thought he could not be luckier than he was right now.

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – Sam's Room**_

Sam had been moved from the recovery to his room just a short while ago. Everyone agreed that Jules would go in first and then if she thought it was okay she would take Sadie in. Jules did not want Sadie being frightened by the way Sam looked.

William, Scott, Spike, Ed and Greg all waited in the hall with Sadie as Jules entered the room. They were the first group designated to come up and see Sam. They were all chomping at the bit to see him but agreed that Jules and Sadie should be first.

Sam's room was darkened with the window blinds closed blocking out most of the early morning sun and only one light was on. The whir and hiss of the ventilator was steady. In a strange way it comforted Jules because she knew it was helping Sam.

Dr. Chasseur said he came through the operation well even though they kept Sam in recovery a really long time. The doctor told her that there was no problem in attaching the plate. Jules had asked what that would mean to his recovery time knowing that Sam would want to get back to SRU as quick as possible. She was happy to hear that it would cut weeks off of light duty for Sam.

Jules was keeping her thinking positive. She did not allow her mind to go to the dark places of potential goodbyes. Sam had given everything he had to stay alive and now it was her turn to fight for him. And fight she would, starting with the thoughts that he would soon be back at what he loved doing.

Dr. Larsson indicated the nerve block would last for several days and if he had excessive pain when he woke they could repeat the procedure. But she felt that would not be the case given the repair made to the rib. The nerve block would make it so they did not have to give him opiates that could depress his respiration.

Eva thought that Sam's biggest challenge would be the pneumonia. But they were pumping him full of antibiotics after getting the results of his sputum culture and identifying it was bacterial instead of viral. Dr. Larsson told her that they had managed to lower his fever too.

So things were looking better.

Jules took up Sam's hand and gently squeezed as she said "Hey soldier. You did so good. You came through that operation with flying colors."

She felt her phone vibrate and she pulled it out. Opening the text message she smiled "Blaze just sent another picture of little Nathan. He is one proud papa. You are now an uncle to another boy. Our shopping list just keeps growing but that is great isn't it. They named him Nathan George Blain. Nice name."

Jules quickly texted 'He is so cute. We are so happy for you both'. Then she sent it. Jules knew that Winds or Mason would update Blaze on Sam's condition so she did not include that.

As she sent the text she received another one. This one from Wordy. She smiled and said "Wordy and Shel had a little girl. Wordy is completely immersed in girls and I bet he loves every single minute of it. They named her Paisley. There's one more for our shopping list."

The thought of shopping list brought back memories of the day they shopped for souvenirs in Scotland. She had thoroughly enjoyed being a certified kilt inspector that day. They had a love so deep and they expressed it openly when they were not at work. This man held her heart and she held his.

Jules looked lovingly at Sam and whispered "You need to get better so I can inspect your kilt again."

Leaning over the bed Jules gave Sam a kiss on the cheek then said "I'm going to bring Sadie in here. I'm going to chance that all this does not scare her. She is so little that she won't know what it all means so it should be okay. Be right back."

She headed for the door and opened it a bit. Sadie was happily babbling in Spike's arms. Jules could not keep Spike away even if she wanted too, which she didn't.

Jules reached for Sadie and said "Sadie girl let's go see Daddy. Daddy is sleeping but we can see him for a little bit. You want to see Daddy."

Sadie babbled "da dada da da da dadada."

Ed said "I think that means yes."

Jules headed back into the room as the door closed giving them some privacy. She moved slowly to the bed with Sadie letting Sadie get used to the sounds and lighting.

She said "See Daddy is sleeping. When Daddy wakes up he can tell you stories. You two are gonna get to spend a lot of time together for a few weeks. That will be nice won't it Sadie."

Sadie reached out towards Sam and said "dada da da dada da da da da" as she squirmed trying to get to her daddy.

A huge sigh of relief expelled from Jules. Sadie did not seem fazed by the machines and sounds or the tube coming out of Sam's mouth. All Sadie saw was her daddy.

Jules moved closer to the bed and Sadie wiggled more and more trying desperately to get to her daddy. The more Jules held her back the more Sadie struggled. Her happy babbling changed to a frustrated whimper.

Making a decision, Jules reached out and positioned Sam's arm a little away from his body on the side without the broken rib. Then she set Sadie down as she said "Careful, Sadie girl, you have to be still. Daddy has owies."

Sadie laid her head in the crook of her daddy's shoulder and smiled sweetly as her happy babbling returned "da da dada dada dada dada da dada dada."

It made Jules smile as she said "Yes dada. Such a daddy's girl you are Sadie."

Sadie clutched her yellow bunny as she snuggled her head closer to her daddy.

What happened next stunned Jules.

Sam moved his arm and wrapped it around Sadie pulling her closer into a hug of sorts.

Jules just stared. Sam was fully sedated. How the heck did he move his arm to hug Sadie?

After staring for some time Jules decided to chalk it up to all the miraculous things that happened to Sam. She leaned down and kissed Sam as she said "I see it goes both ways Sam. Sadie had you wrapped around her little finger the moment she was born."

She watched for a long time and saw Sadie's eyes grow heavy and then close in sleep. Sadie had this little smile on her face. It made Jules think that Sadie knew for a fact she was held by the man who would always do what was necessary to keep her safe and ensure Sadie knew she was loved very deeply.

Jules pulled a chair close to the bed and sat down. She placed her hand over Sam's hand which was around Sadie. Then Jules laid her weary head on the side of the bed. Jules drifted off to sleep.

Spike opened the door a crack. He had waited so long to see Sam and he could not wait anymore. What he saw brought a smile to his face. He waved to the others but put his finger to his lips indicating to be quiet.

He tiptoed into the room and pulled out his phone. Spike had to get a picture of this.

William, Scott, Ed and Greg all filed into the room quietly and grinned. The little family was all together again. They all had a surge of positive feeling that Sam would make it now. Sam was a hard man to kill. He was truly Samtastic.

Spike sent the photo to everyone that was in the rescue party and to Greg.

Greg indicated the blanket at the end of the bed and asked "Spike can you cover Jules?"

Spike went to get the blanket and covered Jules' shoulders carefully so he did not wake her.

William pulled two chairs close and said "Greg, Ed have a seat."

Greg sat down and just rested. Keeping Jules calm and somewhat distracted for the past hours had been difficult. He was very tired.

Ed shook his head and quipped "You take the other chair. Age before beauty." Ed then leaned on the wall. He knew if he sat down he would fall asleep and that would not be good right now. He looked at Sam and whispered "Samo you will make it back to SRU. We will all help."

William chuckled and sat down. He would rest a moment and then go make a call to Yvonne. It was good to see that Samuel had come through the surgery so well. He had no doubt that his son would make a full recovery now.

Scott pulled out a little blanket from Sadie's diaper bag and covered Sadie. He looked at the little lopsided smile on Sadie's face and it made him think of Sam. Sadie took after her mother in so many ways but there was some Sam in there. That lopsided smile was definitely Sam.

.

* * *

 _ **AN:** Second chapter in the same day as promised. Hope you enjoyed all the good vibes and feelings._


	26. Talking To Sam, Animal Crackers & Mangos

**Talking To Sam, Animal Crackers & Mangos**

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – Staff Lounge**_

Dr. Mathieu Chasseur rolled his shoulders and then stretched his back. It was ten am and he had a very long night. His patient had come through surgery fine but it was touch and go in recovery. He was glad when Sam finally stabilized and they moved him into his own room around seven this morning.

He was sitting in the staff lounge on the second floor of the small hospital finishing up some paperwork on his patient. He was glad that Dr. Fouché was able to handle the other two patients. He really wanted nothing to do with that woman. Mathieu wished they had more than just the second floor for patients. But this was a small town and they rarely had more than ten patients at a time; usually five or six at most until tourist season.

Mathieu wished that because that screeching woman, Melpomene, was annoying and disturbing the other patients. And to be honest, she was annoying the staff too. Her voice was loud and had the quality of nails on a chalkboard. That blasted woman did nothing but complain about everything and blamed all her woes on Sam.

It was clear the woman had some sort of psychological problem. Mathieu wished they could just gag her or tape her mouth shut with duct tape. Sedatives had been suggested. But as physicians and nurses they could not do that; even though they really wanted too. They took care of good people and bad people alike without discrimination. It was just too bad this woman hit the far-end of the scale of bad _and_ annoying.

Mathieu grabbed his coffee and downed the last of the dregs. He rolled his shoulders again and rubbed his eyes. Then he set to work on the detailed report that the RCMP was requesting on Sam Braddock. They needed a complete detail of all injuries. Every bruise, cut, burn, scrape and fracture.

He was not allowed to take photos. The General indicated that with Samuel's past military service photos were out of the question. So he was making a detailed drawing and mapping each and every injury along with copious notes on the exact treatment provided for each. The notes needed to be detailed so the prosecution could properly charge the two perpetrators.

Mathieu looked up and saw the military medic in the doorway. He said "Drake, did you need something?"

Drake came in and yawned as he sat down "Mind if I sit here and fill out my paperwork? The RCMP wants a very detailed report of my initial assessment and treatment of Sam."

"They do want a lot don't they? Can't say I've ever had to be this detailed" Mathieu replied.

Grinning Drake said "Well it was the abduction of a constable that crossed province lines and involved both police and the military. Actually, if we add in Tocci's travels it includes four provinces. So yeah they will need to be thorough to ensure appropriate convictions."

Mathieu asked "You think they will make it to trial or will they get off on insanity pleas?"

Greg stepped into the doctor's lounge intending to let Drake know that Galloway was looking for him and he answered "That will be for the psychologist to decide. But my guess is that they will stand trial. If Yawls truly has Borderline Personality Disorder he should have been tried when he shot Plouffe because BPD is a neurosis rather than a psychosis. I could get all technical but one of the differences is that with neurosis a person's behavior is abnormal but they know the difference between right and wrong."

Drake remarked "Yawls knew the difference. He has apologized profusely for what he did to Sam. But he was manipulated. I hope if he is tried and sent to prison that he gets the help he needs. Tocci on the other hand, I hope she rots in a cold dark cell. None of this would have happened if not for her."

Nodding slightly Greg said "Galloway is looking for you Drake. He's down in the café."

All three of them heard Tocci beginning one of her rants. Mathieu muttered "I'd love to gag that woman."

Drake chuckled as he stood and gathered his notes and responded "Wouldn't we all."

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – Sam's Room**_

Jules had taken a couple hours nap in the chair as all the guys and Leah had taken a turn to come in and see Sam. She had slept through it all. So had Sadie, secure in Sam's arm.

It was Sadie's fussing that finally woke her. Sadie was in the mood to move around and that was not good for Sam. So she had picked her up and paced around the room.

She heard Melpomene ranting again and she wanted to shove a rag in her mouth to shut Tocci the heck up. Jules was sick of hearing her blaming Sam for all of this. She was sick of her demanding this and that and complaining when the nurses did not immediately respond. She was sick to death of hearing her whine that she was itching.

Jules wished the walls of the rooms were more sound proof. But they weren't. It was probably her agitation that was making Sadie restless. Perhaps Sadie was also sick to death of listening to the caterwauling of that ghastly woman.

Spike came into the room and saw Jules pacing. He said "I finished giving my statement to the RCMP Inspector. I could take Sadie down to the café area for a bit. She could get a break from listening to Miss Tragedy. You could have a bit of time alone with Sam too."

Jules smiled and said "Yeah that would be good. Thanks Spike. What would we do without all of you?"

Spike took Sadie and said "You never have to find out." Then he looked at Sadie and said in a conspiratorial voice "Hey Sadie, wanna help me sweet talk some animal crackers out of Nurse Charlie?"

Sadie babbled happily.

Jules chuckled, "Spike I swear you love animal crackers more than the kids do. Not too many for Sadie."

"What's too many? You can never have too many animal crackers can you Sadie?" Spike said as he headed out of the room carrying Sadie's diaper bag with him just in case she needed a change. However, if just in case happened, Spike would get Scott to change her.

Jules went to Sam and caressed his arm and said "The RCMP took over jurisdiction. You would be surprised to learn that Superintendent Plouffe was involved at the outset but recused himself when he found out the connection to the Major. He handed it over to Paul Davidson who is now an Inspector in the RCMP Headquarters in Ottawa."

She adjusted his blanket slightly and then continued talking "They are taking statements from every one. After Team Three gives their statements they will be heading back to Toronto. None of them want to go but Holleran needs them back. You know how hard it is to be down two teams."

"Team One is off rotation. With me not back yet from maternity leave they would have been down one. But with Ed's injury they are down two. So Holleran took them off rotation and went back to the five team schedule that was in place before Team Three reactivated. Leah, Jude and Sean are going to leave with Team Three and they will be filling in for you on a rotating basis for the next two weeks."

Jules sat down in the chair "Ed's injury is not too bad. He should be good to go once the stitches are out in about ten days. I'm still in shock that one punch from Mason brought the house down. Wish I could have seen that."

She took Sam's hand and continued like Sam could hear everything she said "Ed, Spike and the Boss are gonna stay here with me and Sadie until you can be transferred home. Scott, Jeff, Zach and Mark can stay until tomorrow. They told me that if you need them to help with your recovery that they will get leave. Adam can stay a day longer but said if I needed him here that he could take leave. I think with Ed, Spike and the Boss here, I'll have him head out. That way Adam will have leave available if you need help recovering. Maybe he could come and join us on the bike trails when you are up to that."

"Mike and his unit will stay until you transfer too because your dad is staying, that is unless he gets called away for something urgent. Winds and the rest of Blaze's unit need to head back tomorrow too. They are getting new unit members and are scheduled to begin training together. Mason has taken leave. He has so much on the books that he said he planned to hang around and bug you for a while. Marsaili and Lachlann will come to Toronto once we are there. I've invited them to stay with us."

Jules thought about what else she could convey because talking to Sam drowned out the screeching from Tocci. She smiled and said "Tomorrow I am going to meet little Louise. You will not believe what happened there. I'll tell you all about it. First of all, her name is Louise Yvonne. Both yours and Matt's mother's name. The coincidence gets even weirder. She had a brother named Sam. He died saving her. Their father's name is Mathieu Chasseur which is French for Matthew Hunter."

Then Jules told him all about how Louise's father did not believe her and how she drew an amazing picture of him to prove she was not telling tales of her brother. Then Jules said "We need to do something nice for her. I think you will want to meet her too when you are better."

Jules stood up and brushed through his hair and said softly "Winds told me he spoke to Yawls. Yawls swears that when you were hanging onto that bush that your heart glowed golden and he heard you speaking to Matt. You know I think I believe you that Matt is your guardian angel. In the condition you were in it should have been impossible for you to hold not only your weight but Yawls' weight too. I think Matt was there and watching over you. Maybe using those wings you said he had to keep you from falling."

She then began to tell him about her Greek dream. Mostly because she found out that it had really happened to Tocci. When she finished she said "So you have a guardian angel and I dream about Greek Goddesses and Gods. We are clearly getting into the realm of unbelievable. I don't know how to explain it Sam but I know it is true."

Jules heard Tocci yelling she was starving and that she needed something decent to eat. Jules rolled her eyes, she was so sick of hearing it.

So she pulled out her phone and said "How about some music Sam. I'm thinking some nice hard rock with a good beat and the guitar riffs you like so much."

Jules selected one of Sam's favorite playlists on her phone and turned the volume to the max. Jules sat back down, held Sam's hand and sang along. The music effectively drowned out Melpomene's bitching.

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – Melpomene's Room**_

Charlie's patience and good mood was wearing thin. She saw Spike enter the café when she was down getting some fresh fruit for Ms. Tocci. That had brought a smile to her face. He had asked for some animal crackers and she had stopped to get some for him and Sadie before going back to Miss Tragedy as Spike had started calling her. Spike said Tocci was so melodramatic and her name was the Greek Goddess of Tragedy so it fit.

She entered the room and saw Miss Tragedy trying in vain to scratch herself. One hand and both legs were cuffed due to her previous actions and none of the nurses were about to request she was uncuffed. The length of chain allowed her to feed herself but not to reach all the places that itched due to the poison ivy. Her other arm was in a sling that was strapped to her chest because she constantly complained of pain from the gun shot.

It was a simple through and through that didn't do much damage but Miss Tragedy complained incessantly that she was in dire pain. Dr. Fouché refused to up the pain med dosage any more than it was already.

Charlie walked to the rolling table and said with her professional voice "Ms. Tocci the only fresh fruit we have on hand at the moment are apples and mangos. I brought you both since I was unsure of your preference."

Melpomene watched as the nurse pushed the table towards her. She looked with disdain at the cut up apple and picked up several slices and threw them at the nurse "How dare you bring me common apples. I want blackberries and raspberries."

An apple slice hit Charlie in the cheek and it took all her self-control not to yell at the witch. Tightly she said "As I said we only have apples and mangos. Eat them or don't. The choice is yours. I have other patients to tend too."

In a huffy voice Melpomene said "I guess mangos will have to do. The service in this hospital is terrible. You were damned slow in bringing me the fruit."

Charlie thought 'you are darned lucky I bothered to bring you any fruit at all'. But she just plastered on her fake professional smile and said "I will check on you later."

Melpomene picked up a slice of mango and ate the pulp then threw the rind at the door as the nurse exited. She hated that nurse. Melpomene had overheard her say she knew Sam in high school.

She began to think of how she could get out of this. She needed a good lawyer. Perhaps she could get off due to extreme duress of having to care for people with psychological issues.

Getting tired of thinking of that Melpomene flipped through the magazine she was given. She came across an article on facials and how one woman was saying that she created her own homemade facials mixing mango. She read _Mango is full of powerful phytochemicals and antioxidants that will give your skin the nurturing boost it needs. Give your skin a royal beauty treatment with the king of fruits! Revitalize and rejuvenate by applying mashed mango liberally to your dry, irritated skin_.

Melpomene ate half of her mangos and then decided to mash up the rest of them and apply it to her face and neck. The stuff the hospital had put on her to try and stop the itching smelled awful and she was sure it was ruining her complexion. So she decided to give herself the royal beauty treatment.

She tried to scrap out the mango from the skin but it was impossible so she decided to eat the rest of the pulp and then rub the skin of the mango all over her face and neck. It smelled so nice she decided to rub it on her thighs and stomach too. She used every piece of mango, rubbing both sides of the mango all over her.

As she felt her hair she got angry and decided that she would demand that hospital buy her a wig. Not just any wig but one that was of high quality. They had butchered her hair and they needed to pay. Melpomene was sure that she could get her lawyer to demand that.

She picked up one of the pieces of mango and decided to suck on the peel to get the last of the mango pulp off. She never had mangos before but she liked them. Melpomene decided that she would demand mangos with every meal. They were very tasty and sounded exotic and she could ensure her complexion was not ruined by the foul smelling stuff they put on her face.

In fact, she wanted more now and so yelled "Bring me more mangos!" at the top of her lungs.

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – Café**_

Spike had Sadie propped up on one of the tables with a few pillows that the guys were holding behind her. Sadie was holding court over all the SRU and JTF2 guys and all of Sam's cousins. Every last one of the guys was putty in her hands as she laughed and gummed the animal cookies.

Adam who was normally the gruffest cousin was currently making monkey sounds as Zach was making sheep sounds and Spike was mooing like a cow.

Charlie walked in on the scene and stood by the other nurses who were on break at the moment. She smiled broadly at Sam's daughter. She was so glad that Sam Sam had a woman like Jules in his life and they had a beautiful daughter too.

It seemed that Sam Sam had stayed kind and gentle as he grew up. He certainly engendered a great amount of love and concern for him from so many. It made her happy and she could not wait to tell Jett. She had been too busy to have an opportunity to call him yet.

A brief conversation with that giant of a man called Mason had let her know that Sam had actually joined the Army even though he had no plans of doing that when they were in high school. She recalled one conversation where Sam had the General expected him to join but he'd rather be a police officer.

The sadness that showed in Sam Sam's eyes when he made that statement made her not press further for details. She hated when he was sad. Luckily in high school that was a rare occurrence. His smile and charm had all the girls falling for him. Charlie was surprised that Sam never asked another girl to go steady. Everyone she knew would have said yes in less than a heartbeat.

She chuckled lightly, maybe Sam Sam just liked playing the field and enjoyed not being tied to one girl. Although, by the look of Jules, Sam Sam had fallen hard for her and found the one, like she had found Jett.

Spike turned around at the chuckle and said with wide eyed innocence "Hey Charlie, do you think Sadie could get more animal cookies?"

Mason grinned and said "She wouldn't have to if you didn't keep eating them."

"Pot meet kettle" Spike said as he brushed off animal cracker crumbs from Mason's chin.

Mason shrugged "I have you to thank for Lachlann's love of animal cookies. He demands I make all the sounds and sort them out into a zoo first. So yeah, I developed a taste for them too."

Spike just grinned. That day Cala and Mason's daughter died was sad but he had enjoyed playing with Lachlann. It seemed to him that Mason chose to think on the happier thoughts of that day.

Charlie took a step towards the kitchen area and said "I'll be back with more animal crackers. It looks like more than just Spike and Mason enjoy them."

The guys around the table all grinned and several wiped crumbs off their mouths or shirts. Sadie squealed happily as Scott picked up an elephant and made a weird sound trying to imitate it. That had several of them competing on who could do the best elephant sound, all to the delight of Sadie whose face and hands were now covered in gummy animal crackers.

William entered the café during the competition and leaned on the wall. He grinned. Grown men all reduced to putty at the hands of his granddaughter. It was priceless.

Winds entered and smiled. He was one of the last to be interviewed by the RCMP Inspector. He had encouraged that Yawls get a good psychological evaluation and they take into consideration how he was manipulated.

He had had a long conversation with Yawls in the wee hours of the morning before the RCMP Inspector arrived. He had brought Mason into the conversation too. They had listened as Yawls detailed everything that Plouffe had put him through. If Winds could kill Plouffe again he would. That man was depraved.

Plouffe had taken a young, vulnerable, soldier and cruelly abused and assaulted him to the point Yawls snapped mentally. Yawls needed help more than prison but Winds knew without a doubt that there would be prison time. That was only because Yawls knew right from wrong. Yawls had cried when he told them how he had treated Blondie and wished he had not hit him with the pipe or burned him.

Yawls had cried again when he told them how Blondie had treated him. Blondie had treated him with respect and tried to help him. Winds was glad that Yawls did not repeat to Mason or the RCMP Inspector what he had told him about Blondie in the woods. Winds hoped that Yawls understood that Blondie might not want that shared and it really did not have any bearing on the case. He hoped Yawls would keep it to himself like Winds told him to do in the woods.

Winds wondered if Yawls had been treated properly and never met Plouffe, if Yawls could have lived a decent life. Probably, he thought. It was Yawls' bad luck to encounter Plouffe. Just like Blondie's. The evil men of this world, like Plouffe and Qasim, caused so much hurt.

He turned to the General and asked "Do you think they will take into consideration Yawls' remorse when sentencing him?"

General Braddock turned to Winds and said "I think they will. I'm sure Samuel will have some input on that too. I believe Yawls but I really want to hear Samuel's side before I give any recommendations myself. However at Greg's suggestion they will be holding him a locked psychiatric facility that can services his needs rather than in the general prison."

"Good" Winds said and then struggled with whether to tell the General what he knew. Part of him was afraid that it might come out if Yawls got confused and forgot not to tell.

Knowing how the General had helped Blondie with the Dupont thing he said "Sir, there is something you may need to know. However I'm going to wait until Blondie is conscious and ask him how he feels about it. I'm only saying something now because I'm unsure about Yawls' ability to keep his mouth shut."

William turned and saw the look on Winds face. It was very conflicted. William placed a hand on Winds' shoulder and said "If it is something that should remain private I say we wait until Samuel is able to give his opinion on whether it is said. If it comes out before Samuel wakes then I'll deal with it."

Winds nodded "Yeah, okay. I just hope it doesn't come out."

At the look in the General's eye Winds got the impression the General already knew about it. But he pushed that to the back of his mind and strode forward to get in on the animal sounds competition which had changed to who had the best horse sound. Sadie was giggling her little head off at all of them. Winds knew he couldn't do anything to help Blondie but he sure could help entertain Blondie's daughter.

Raking his hands through his hair William watched everyone play with Sadie as his mind was someplace much darker. He was well aware of what it was Winds did not want to say. Samuel had managed to whisper a few things to him in Scottish Gaelic when they were in the ER room alone waiting for Jules. Samuel's use of Scottish Gaelic told him that Samuel wanted no one who might be in the room to comprehend what he was saying. It was deeply private.

Samuel was worried it would come out in Yawls' statement and although he was not ashamed of it because it was out of his control, Samuel did not want the multiple rapes he suffered while captive to be public knowledge. Samuel managed to tell him that he had never planned to tell a single soul, not even Jules. But it was the only way he could connect with Yawls and survive. He told Yawls because survival was more important.

William promised Samuel he would keep his secret. That it would be up to Samuel whether he told Jules. William would do all in his power to keep it quiet and out of the record too.

That is why William had sat in on Yawls' interview. Inspector Davidson was not too pleased he sat in but William had pulled rank and said that he needed to be aware since two of the three were former soldier and one was a JTF2 soldier and that it was a matter of maintaining national security. That was how he was allowed to have Winds in the interview too instead of another RCMP officer that was sent to guard Yawls.

William chose Winds for two reasons. He was more senior than Mason and William could not trust that Mason might not lash out. Samuel and Mason had a bond and Mason never allowed Samuel to be hurt if at all possible. Winds had come a long way in tempering his mouth. He was more deliberate in his actions.

He hoped that he could begin fast tracking Winds into the command structure of the JTF2. But he didn't think he could ever get the man to leave the field. Winds was a soldier through and through. Married to the military.

Charlie stopped next to Sam Sam's father and placed a hand on his arm a moment.

William came out of his thoughts and gave the nurse a smile as he said "Can I help you?"

Charlie shook her head and simply said "You are a lucky man. Sam is a good son and you have a wonderful little granddaughter. I'll take care of Sam Sam. You go enjoy playing with Sadie for now."

William grinned and said "I like you Charlie."

She laughed as she headed out to take Miss Tragedy more mangos. Maybe that would shut her up for a bit.

William strode forwards and joined the group of men that were dancing attendance on his granddaughter and eating animal crackers. It had been ages since he had one so he reached out and picked up a cat shaped one and joined in the fun by making meowing sounds causing Sadie to giggle and babble.

He took a bite of it and thought, might have to get some of these. Then he added for good measure, for Sadie's benefit of course as he reached out for another one. By the fifth one he had to admit to himself that he was hooked on the simple cookie. Not that he admit that to anyone else though.

William smiled as he sat back enjoying the moment.

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – Hallway on Second Floor Near Melpomene's Room**_

Joseph leaned up against the wall as Lance stared at him and said "You shouldn't be here."

"I know. It's just, this is all my fault" Joseph stated.

"Stop right there Joseph. None of this is your fault. NONE! I mean who in their right mind thinks they can live the life of luxury on a police officer's salary. Hell, with all the extra hours of SRU, it is more like a pay cut rather than pay raise."

Joseph smiled and snorted for the first time since learning Melpomene was involved. He said "Apparently my _EX_ -girlfriend. God, I don't know what I ever saw in her. She was so fake and self-absorbed. I should have listened to you and my mom so long ago."

Lance laughed "Yes you should have. And you can add evil, controlling, bitchy, foul mouthed and just downright ugly to your list of what she is. Christ, you should see what she looks like right now. Wait, strike that. You're not going to see her because you should not go anywhere near her ever again for any reason."

Joseph pushed off the wall "I just need to tell her off a bit. Do you think I could get away with doing that? I mean, I feel like I need to …"

Rollie strode forward with the rest of Team Three, Mike, Phil and Tyler. They had come up to say goodbye to Jules since they were done with their interviews and needed to head back to Toronto.

They stopped next to Joseph and Rollie cut Joseph off "Probably not the wisest thing to do Joseph. You need to simply cut the strings and walk away."

Lance nodded "It's not like you have feelings for her or need to say goodbye. Right?"

Joseph snorted again and said "No not goodbye. More like good riddance. I wanted to tell her not only would I never propose marriage to her I wouldn't have anything to do with her if she were the last woman on earth and the human race would die out."

"That's better Joseph. Now next time either of us wants to date a woman we make sure they meet your mom first. She told me my ex was no good before I married her. I should have listened to her too" Lance stated.

Mike Fringle laughed "You two sure have no skill in picking women. Maybe Team Three can help you in that department Lance."

Lance chuckled "Yeah maybe. But I'm sworn off women until I sort out custody of Milo. Can't afford any complications."

Phil patted Lance on the back and said "We'll help with that too."

Charlie saw the group of officers in the hallway near Miss Tragedy's room. She had heard their comments as she stopped to confer with one of the other nurses who was asking if she had seen Dr. Chasseur. Charlie indicated that Dr. Chasseur was in the staff lounge doing paperwork the last time she saw him.

As she continued on toward the room, Charlie was surprised that her patient was not screeching at their scathing comments by now.

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – Melpomene's Room**_

Charlie pushed open the door. Then she rushed in and hit the emergency button in the room.

The automated alarm sounded "Code Blue Room 201, Code Blue Room 201."

Rollie, Mike, Tyler, Lance, Phil and Joseph moved to the door. They all looked in but left room for the medical staff to get in.

Melpomene was gasping for air and clawing at her throat with one hand. Her eyes were bulging out. She could not breathe. She could not talk. Her body began to convulse.

Dr. Chasseur raced in and said "Charlie what's going on?"

Charlie was in the process of dropping the bed flat as she answered "I don't know. I came in and she was like this. I was in here a short time ago and she was fine."

Dr. Chasseur took emergency measures and called for a tracheotomy pack when he determined the patient could not breathe and her throat was swollen shut.

Nurse Pauline rushed in with the crash cart and began opening drawers and pulled out what the doctor needed.

As Charlie was positioning the patient properly for an emergency tracheotomy, Dr. Chasseur was putting on gloves and Pauline swabbed the throat with antiseptic.

Pauline asked "Qu'y at-il sur son visage, son cou et ses bras?"  
(What is all over her face, neck and arms?)

Charlie looked at it and said "Mango? I brought her fresh mango. I was bringing her more because she wanted more. I have no idea why it would be all over her body though."

Dr. Chasseur stated "It looks like it might be a serious allergic reaction. No time for epinephrine. I need to get her airway open first."

As Charlie said "She didn't tell me she was allergic" the convulsions stopped and Melpomene's body stopped all movement. Her eyes fixed on the ceiling.

Dr. Chasseur quickly did an emergency tracheotomy and Charlie attached the manual resuscitator to it and began pumping air in. Dr. Chasseur felt for a pulse and did not find one. He called for Pauline to set up the deflibulator. He lubricated the paddles while Pauline pulled the patient's gown down.

When it was charged Mathieu called "Clear."

Charlie released her hold on the manual resuscitator as Dr. Chasseur applied the paddles and shocked Melpomene. Then Charlie went back to pumping the manual resuscitator.

For five minutes the doctor and nurses worked valiantly to try and resuscitate Melpomene Tocci but in the end they could not revive her.

Dr. Chasseur called the time of death and gently closed the patient's eyes.

Pauline made note on the chart.

Charlie removed the manual resuscitator and then pulled up the deceased gown and then sheet up to cover Melpomene's face.

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – Hallway Outside Melpomene's Room**_

In the hallway, Team Three and Joseph had stood transfixed and silently watched the death of Melpomene Tocci. Emotions were mixed. None of them liked watching someone die struggling for breath and convulsing. That was very hard to watch. But none of them were all that sad that Tocci was dead.

Joseph turned and walked away. He was shaken. The woman on that bed looked nothing like the woman he had dated. She was now just as ugly on the outside as she apparently was on the inside.

Lance raced after Joseph and caught him as Joseph started to collapse and shake. It had been shocking to witness a death like that. He put Joseph's arm around his shoulder and said quietly "I got you buddy."

Rollie came along the opposite side to lend support and said "Let's take him to the café. We need to let the General and the RCMP Inspector know what happened."

Phil, Mike and Tyler came up behind them and Mike said "It is a good thing we were all there to be witnesses. Otherwise it might have looked bad for Joseph."

Tyler said "Hell, it looks bad for all of us. They need to do an autopsy and figure out what killed her so there is no cloud of suspicion over any of us."

Rollie sighed deeply "Yeah you are right Tyler."

Lance quietly said "It's kinda fitting that she died in the same manner Sam almost died. Kinda like Karma."

The guys all nodded and thought karma's a bitch and so _was_ Melpomene.

.

* * *

 _ **AN:** We all knew Melpomene had to die. I just had to do it the right way. Let me know what you thought of this chapter. I love hearing from all my readers._


	27. By The Book, Charlie Checks on Sam & Tag

**By The Book, Charlie Checks on Sam & Tag You're It**

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – Café**_

Rollie and the rest of Team Three along with Joseph entered the café. Rollie located General Braddock and Ed and strode directly to them. He said "We have a situation."

Ed and William turned to Rollie and both saw Lance helping another man sit in a chair.

General Braddock asked "Who is that?"

Rollie drew in a breath and said "That would be Joseph, Tocci's boyfriend, part of the situation we have Sir. I'm sure you heard the code blue. It was for Tocci. She's dead. Joseph and Lance were outside her room when the rest of us went up to say goodbye to Sam."

Ed asked "Did he kill her?"

Shaking his head Rollie replied "No, but that is where the situation lies. It does not look good for any of us that were in that hallway."

William asked "How did she die?"

"Not really sure what caused it but I heard the doctor say severe allergic reaction. It was not a pleasant death. There needs to be an autopsy. I can vouch for all of Team Three except Lance. They were with me. Lance however was not" Rollie explained.

Ed stood and said "I'll go round up Inspector Davidson."

Winds blew out a breath and looked at Mason "Can't say I'm sorry she is dead. Just wish it didn't put them under suspicion."

Spike quickly said "Scott watch Sadie. I need to go get Jules."

Greg put out a hand "No Spike. Leave her with Sam."

Spike shook his head "No. Don't you see? She was alone with Sam on the second floor. If they suspect …"

Greg looked at Spike and put his hand on his shoulder "Yes she was alone and everything will work itself out. We know Jules and her focus has been Sam only. She has ignored Tocci since she arrived. Besides she would never …"

Spike raked his hand through his hair "Yeah I know that. I just …"

"You just don't want her to be alone or think that we think she could do something like that" Greg finished for Spike.

Nodding his head, Spike sat down "Yeah. Something like that."

Greg looked around the room and then announced "I need everyone to act as though you are sequestered. You should all document your whereabouts since arrival. Do not discuss the death of Tocci with anyone. We do this by the book, boys and girl. Let's help Inspector Davidson do his job."

There were nods all around.

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – Sam's Room**_

Jules heard the code blue and knew it was for Melpomene's room. She wondered what happened. But her focus was on Sam. He needed her so Sam was her only focus.

She wondered if Sam dreamt in his sedated state. If he did she hoped it was good dreams.

There was a soft knock at the door then it opened. Jules turned down the rock music and turned to see who entered. She smiled at Charlie and said "Hello."

Charlie entered and said "I'm here to do one last check before I go give my statement and head out for a little sleep. I'll be back later tonight. My husband Jett is coming up with the kids. I'm missing them terribly. Would you mind if Jett visited Sam tonight?"

Jules answered "That should be okay. Where do you live?"

As Charlie checked the ventilator settings she responded "Jett and I and our five kids live in Saint-Félicien. It is about fifteen miles from here. I work at the clinic there part time while the kids are little."

"How did you end up here?" Jules asked.

Charlie sighed "I've known Dr. Chasseur, Mathieu, for a few years. We met him when my family and I camped in the Reserve about five years ago. Our eldest son, Austin, fell and broke his arm. The hospital was closer than my clinic and Austin was in pain so we stopped here. Mathieu was on duty that day."

"Jett and Mathieu hit it off. They became fly-fishing buddies and our families camped together several times. Jett is a child psychologist and has been helping Mathieu and his wife help Louise deal with the loss of Samuel. It has not been an easy few years for them. Samuel was such a bright and loving boy. It is sad he drowned."

Checking Sam's pulse she stopped a moment. Then Charlie resumed "Mathieu called me and asked me if I could come to help when he was informed that an SRU officer from Toronto would be coming and none of his teammates spoke French. He wanted to make sure that there was no language barrier in the officer's care. He had no idea if the officer spoke French. And since all the nurses that work here only speak French and I speak both he asked if I could come."

Charlie softly grinned and said "At the time I had no idea it was Sam Sam. Last I knew Sam was attending the police academy but I never dreamed it would be him." She looked sadly at Sam Sam's bruised and battered body. Charlie then shifted her gaze to Jules and said "I'm glad I was able to come and take care of him."

Jules squeezed Sam's hand and said "I'm glad you are here too. But French wouldn't be a problem for Sam. It is a required language for Special Forces but I think he learned it earlier. He speaks several languages."

Charlie half-laughed, "Yeah. Sam Sam did have an ear for languages. I still remember Sam Sam speaking Latin. That was fun. No one around us could understand when we spoke Latin. It used to drive Jett nuts. We did it just to tease Jett sometimes."

Making notes on Sam's charts, Charlie fell silent. Her mind returned to that room with Miss Tragedy. How apropos that name was. The way she died was certainly unexpected and tragic. She sighed.

Jules saw the conflicted looks cross Charlie's face and asked "Are you alright Charlie?"

Charlie looked up and said "I will be. Just death always knocks me for a loop. I had uncharitable thoughts towards that woman. She died and that makes me feel … well … not so good. I know that God chose her time and place of death but it is hard to think I might have had something to do with it."

"I heard the code blue. So Tocci died?" Jules said.

"Yes she did. The doctor thinks she had an allergic reaction to something. They have cordoned off her room and will wait for Inspector Davidson and a team to inspect it before they take her to the morgue and do an autopsy" Charlie stated.

Then she looked at Jules and said "All Sam's vitals are looking good. The nurse taking over for me does not speak English. I'm sorry."

Jules said "Don't worry. Sam's father is here and so are a couple of his unit buddies. They all speak French so it will be okay. Thank you for taking such good care of Sam. He is important to a lot of people. I'm sure he is gonna be happy to see you when he wakes up. It sounds like you two were really close in high school."

Charlie gently rubbed Sam's arm and said "As close as Sam would let me get, but yes I'd like to think we were close."

Then she looked at Jules and said "I'm glad he has you and Sadie and all his other family. Sam was so alone and guarded in high school. I never knew much about his family, only that he did not live with them. I never pressed for details because it made his eyes so sad it hurt to look at them. That always made me a little sad."

Jules nodded. She did not share but she knew exactly what Charlie was referring too. Sam had been so guarded when he joined Team One. His eyes were so expressive and she now knew some of the pain he felt growing up. It was a terrible thing that happened when Sara died.

She was just so thankful that Sam and his family had reconciled. He had been the inspiration for her to reconcile with her family. Without Sam, Jules thought that she might never have reconciled with her father and brothers. She would have missed out on so much more.

Jules did say "We are lucky to have Sam in our lives. I'm glad the guys located him in time and that he had such good care here."

Charlie nodded and said "If you need anything at all, do not hesitate to ask. Jett and I will be by later tonight."

Jules nodded and as Charlie left the room she turned up the rock music again for Sam to listen to. Jules laid her head on the bed near Sam's hand and simply rested. Sadie would be getting hungry soon so she would take this moment to just sit quietly with the love of her life and hold his hand.

 _Sam was floating. He didn't feel anything beneath him. But he was not afraid. He felt relaxed and safe and warm. He kept his eyes closed as he enjoyed the sensation of floating. It was somewhat like HALO jumping but without the wind in his face._

 _He heard some indistinct voices talking. Sam could not make out what they were saying. He opened his eyes and turned his head to see who was interrupting his nice relaxation._

 _Sam saw Matt, Lou, Shy, a beautiful female angel and a huge male angel sitting near him. Whoa! Was he actually dead?_

 _Shy said "I'm glad everyone got there in the nick of time. You did a heck of a job saving Blondie's butt this time Matt."_

" _I couldn't have done it without all the help though. It took all our energy to keep him from falling" Matt said._

 _Lou shook his head and said "Spike was hurting so bad there for a moment when he thought he lost Sam too. That was terrible to see."_

 _Matt and Shy nodded._

 _Dubbiel, Mason's guardian angel, added "Mason was so distraught. He thought he had lost Blondie. His heart was breaking like the terrible day he lost both his sister Cala and daughter Caitrìona."_

 _Then Dubbiel said "I cannot believe that Blaze put the gun to that woman's head. Yankee had a heck of a time stopping him from actually pulling the trigger."_

 _Rahmiel, Jules' guardian angel stated "Yankee told me that it was Sam's yell for Jules that stopped Blaze."_

 _Sam sat up, if that's what it could be called when there was nothing around him to tell him up from down. He could not believe his eyes. He smiled seeing Matt, Lou and Shy. He missed all of them so much._

 _He was about to call out when he saw Sara skip over to Matt and plop down next to him._

 _Sara said "Can Sammy play?"_

 _Matt laughed "Sammy is sleeping sweetie. He needs his rest."_

 _She shook her head and a huge grin displayed on her face as she pointed at Sam "No he's not."_

 _All the guardian angels turned and saw Sam sitting up._

 _Sam was confused but happy as he said "Hi guys. Hi Sara. What do you want to play Sara?"_

 _Shy's mouth dropped open as he stammered out "He sees us."_

 _Matt said "Hi Sammy" as he stood and took Sara by her hand and headed for Sam who also stood up._

 _Dubbiel quickly explained to Shy "Blondie's unconscious mind can be tapped by Sara. She has this connection with him. Blondie saw Matt once too when he was awake after he fell down a staircase in Scotland. I'll tell you all about that later. But when Blondie is unconscious he can see and hear us."_

 _Rahmiel corrected "Normally Sam only sees Matt and Sara. It is rare he can see all of us."_

 _Shy stood and asked "Does he remember?"_

 _Lou answered "His conscious mind only recalls residual feelings. Like something good happened but not actual events that take place. Why?"_

 _Shy moved toward Blondie and said "I just needed to know."_

 _Sam bent down and picked up Sara "Hey there. What do you want to play?"_

 _Matt laughed and said "What do you think?"_

 _Sam smiled and said "Yo-yos."_

 _Sara nodded happily._

 _Matt handed Sam's yellow one to him, Sara's blue one to her and then Matt put the string of his green one on his own finger._

 _Sam stopped when he saw Shy approaching. So many emotions cascaded through him. Shy looked untouched with a glow about him and pristine wings. He was no longer beaten, butchered and burned like the last time he saw him._

 _Tentatively Sam said "Shy?"_

" _You can see me?" Shy asked._

 _The yo-yo forgotten in his hand Sam nodded and then his eyes teared up "I'm so sorry. I wish I could have saved you."_

 _Shy wrapped his arms around Blondie and pulled him close as he said "You did. You did. I asked so very much of you. It was unfair of me to laden you with that burden. But you did not fail me. You gave me an instant release rather than allowing me to suffer."_

 _He pushed Blondie back and said sincerely "Thank you."_

 _Sam nodded and said "It was hard but I know you would've done the same for me if the situation was reversed. Ed and Greg helped me a lot in dealing with that one and letting go of my guilt and pain."_

 _Shy smiled "I like them a lot."_

" _How do you know them?" Sam asked._

 _Shy laughed "Well, I've seen a lot of them in the past six months."_

 _Sam was confused "You have? How?" Then Sam looked at Matt who was grinning big time. Sam turned back to Shy and a smile grew as he said "No … really … you?"_

 _Shy nodded and spread his wings wide "Yeah I love my charge so much. Sadie is such a sweet little girl. I will keep her safe for you while you rest. Wait til you see what Mason made for Sadie at Dubbiel's suggestion."_

" _Dubbiel?" Sam asked and then looked at the large guardian angel. Recognition dawned and he smiled as he said "I've seen Dubbiel once or twice. He's Mason's guardian angel."_

 _Rahmiel, Lou, and Dubbiel joined them and Dubbiel said "Yes I am."_

 _Sam looked at Lou and said "Good to see you again Lou" then shifted to Jules' guardian angel and added "and you too Rahmiel."_

 _Rahmiel hugged Sam and said "I wish we would stop seeing you. I wish you did not have such a hard path. But know that we will all be there for you._

 _Sara wanted to play so she pushed between them and touched Sam and then raced away shouting "Tag you're it."_

 _Sam flashed a WOW smile then tagged Shy and raced away calling out "Tag you're it."_

 _Shy looked stunned._

 _Matt laughed and raced away from Shy with the others._

 _Shy laughed and then raced after the others. The game of tag was in full swing. Shy knew he was going to enjoy being Sadie's guardian angel._

 _Sam laughed as he scooped up Sara and helped her keep away from Shy._

Jules lifted her head when she thought she heard Sam laugh. No. There was no way he could laugh. He was sedated. She looked at his face and there was no sign of any emotions. It was lax.

Wait. If she looked closely she could see a hint of an upturned mouth and Sam's eyes flickered behind his closed lids. Was he dreaming? Maybe.

Jules leaned down and kissed his cheek and whispered in his ear "Sweet dreams my love."

.

* * *

 _ **AN:** Hope you like who I picked for Sadie's guardian angel. _


	28. Goodbyes, Murder Accusation, Yawls' New

**Goodbyes, Murder Accusation, Yawls' New Psychologist**

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – Sam's Room**_

Jules was holding Sadie who had fallen asleep after nursing. Her tummy was full of both milk and cookies. Spike had carried in a very messy little Sadie with a grin on his face. He exclaimed that it wasn't all his fault. He had only given Sadie one animal cracker. But so had the General, Greg, Scott, Jeff, Mason, Ed, Rollie, Winds … he had trailed off as her expression had become stern.

But then she smiled and Spike grinned like a loon and told her all about the animal sounds competition. They visited as Jules gave Sadie a quick bath in the bathroom sink. Spike had excused himself afterwards so she could nurse Sadie in privacy.

There was a knock at the door and Jules quietly called out "Enter."

Rollie poked his head in and said "Hey Jules. Is it okay if the team comes in to say goodbye to Sam? We have to head back to Toronto now."

She nodded and Rollie opened the door and Phil, Mike, Tyler, Lance and Rollie entered.

They all headed for the bed and stood in a semi-circle crowding around the bed. It reminded Jules of when Team One had crowded around Sam's bed after the gang war hot call years ago. She realized that Team Three needed to know some things.

Jules said "Hey guys, you need to step back and not crowd around him like that. Give Sam space. Being circled like that makes him nervous. I won't go into why, just know you should never do that when he is in the hospital. Also, unless you have a death wish, NEVER startle him awake."

Tyler chuckled and said "Residual Special Forces training."

"Something like that" Jules responded.

The guys stepped back and then one by one they stepped close to Sam.

Lance went first and felt awkward and was not quite sure what to say. He finally said quietly "Sam, I'm looking forward to working with you when you get back." Then he stepped back.

Phil went next and he patted Sam's arm "Hey TL, you must be better at negotiations than you think. Whatever you said to Yawls did the trick. You heal quick now okay."

Tyler stepped up as Phil stepped back and looked at Sam's bruises and sighed "I'm gonna have your new phone ready for you when you return. You know, I seriously considered getting one of those GPS tracking chips and implanting it in you while you are out. Spike talked me out of it. Anyhow … just get better soon."

Mike moved to the bed and gripped Sam's hand and lightly joked "You know we are on the same team now Sam. I can't be covering for you anymore. So, no more with this getting hurt bit." Then his voice became serious "Really though, take the time you need to recover. I got the team's back until you come back to us."

Rollie stepped up and patted Mike's back. Mike looked at Rollie and nodded.

Mike turned to the guys and said "Let's head out."

When the rest of the team had left the room Rollie stepped closer to the bed and said "Samo the team needs you so you get back to us as fast as you can but not before you take some time to spend with Jules and Sadie. When you get back I know you will be on light duty. We'll figure out something for you to do that won't drive you crazy. Take care and we'll check in on you when you get back to Toronto."

Then Rollie turned to Jules and said "Leah, Jude and Sean will be up in a bit to say goodbye when they finish their statements. Call me if either of you need anything."

Jules was touched by the team's words for Sam and it felt good to know that Sam was on a team that would look out for him like Team One had. She replied "I'll call once we are home and settled in. I'm sure Sam would like to see you all then and thank you for all you guys did to find him."

Rollie leaned down and gave Jules a quick hug and then stood up and said "It's no more than what Sam would have done for any of us."

Then Rollie left the room. He did not really want to leave Jules and Sam here. But he knew that they would be well taken care of by those staying behind.

Jules stood and placed Sadie in the little rolling crib that Charlie had brought in for her a while ago. She stretched her back and then picked up Sam's hand and said "You have a good team Sam. They are all good guys. I know it won't be the same as being with Team One but you belong with them too."

There was another knock at the door and it started to open. Jules turned expecting it to be Leah, Jude, Sean or even one or more of the guys. So, when she saw an RCMP officer enter she was confused.

"May I help you?" Jules asked.

The RCMP officer looked down at his note pad and then up again and asked "Are you Mrs. Braddock?"

Jules answered "Yes."

He stepped into the room and let the door close. He looked at the woman and then glanced at the officer in the bed. This was his first crime scene to interview potential subjects on his own. His superior never let him do this. But there were so many to be interviewed that Davidson had to allow him to take statements too.

Ingram had been sent to talk to the nurses upstairs since he spoke French fluently. They told him the wife of the officer that was abducted was up here when he asked if anyone besides patients were on this floor. His mind began putting together scenarios for Ms. Tocci's highly suspicious death.

He had to hide his laugh when one nurse said it looked like an allergic reaction. Allergic to what? No, in his mind this was a murder clear as day. Also in his mind the most likely suspect would be the wife of the injured officer. One nurse said the officer was so bad off that he could not breath on his own and was being kept alive on a ventilator. That could drive a grieving woman to commit murder.

Ingram faced the wife of the officer and his mind locked onto the possibilities. Most women killed by poison rather than direct action. Most were frightened of guns and knives. In a hospital like this, the wife could have easily gotten ahold of a drug that would kill Ms. Tocci.

"Mrs. Braddock, I'm Officer Ingram. I need to ask you some questions" Ingram stated with exaggerated authority.

Jules disliked the tone and was put on edge immediately. She responded "I already gave my statement to Inspector Davidson. I did not see Ms. Tocci on the plane or see her take Sadie's bunny or cut the charging cord. Although I can hypothesis that the cord was cut when she took the bunny, I cannot prove it. Beyond what I stated before, I have nothing else to add."

Officer Ingram stated "No, I am not here about that. I see in the notes from Inspector Davidson that you made the comment that you wanted Ms. Tocci to get what she deserved. Is that correct?"

Finding her warning bells starting to trigger and her ire starting to rise at the implication this officer's voice was making, Jules stated firmly "Yes I did. She deserved to be tried for the heinous things she did that resulted in my husband being abducted and gravely injured. She deserved to be convicted and sent to prison."

Ingram noted that Mrs. Braddock went on the defensive right out of the gate. That probably meant she was covering for some action. He asked "Are you sure that is what you meant? Your husband is on life support. Perhaps you thought that she deserved to die and helped her along."

Jules stared at the officer with an incredulous expression for several seconds. She exploded "How dare you imply I had anything to do with Ms. Tocci's death."

Scratching the back of his neck casually, Ingram brazenly suggested "Well you were up here all alone. You could have very easily slipped out and taken out a form of revenge. What did you give Ms. Tocci to make her stop breathing?"

"That is ludicrous. Get the hell out of this room now!" Jules bellowed loudly.

Sadie startled awake at her mother's yell and started to bawl loudly.

The door burst open and Ed, Spike, Scott, Mason and Adam stormed into the room. Spike went directly for Jules who had turned at Sadie's cry and started to go to her. Ed, Mason, Adam and Scott corralled the officer.

Adam scowled and growled out angrily "What the hell did you do to Jules?"

Ed's face was livid and his eyes ice shards as he glared at the officer.

Mason loomed over the scrawny officer, his face was fierce and his fists clenched as he fought an instant urge to plant one or both of his fists into this officer's face.

Scott's voice came out deadly cold as he said "Get out now!"

Jules was soothing Sadie with soft words. She was sorry she yelled and frightened Sadie but the audacity of that officer had hit her so wrong. She had been keeping it together under all this stress and focusing everything on Sam. But for that officer to flat out accuse her of murdering Tocci had hit a raw nerve. It was more than she could take and had released all her pent-up emotions in her outburst.

Spike put his arm protectively around Jules and saw when the tears sprouted in her eyes. He pulled her into a hug and comforted Jules and Sadie at the same time.

Mason, Ed, Scott and Adam were effectively herding the cowed and mute officer out of the room with their hard looks and stepping forward slowly. They herded him completely out the door and ensured it closed firmly behind them.

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – Outside Sam's Room**_

Ed declared in a razor-edged voice "Explain yourself now officer."

Ingram swallowed hard as the four extremely angry men glared at him. He was surprised that it was not the giant of a man that scared him most. It was the man wearing an Air Force flight jacket, the one who demanded to know what he did to jewels. What the hell would he do to jewels? It made no sense at all.

The scowl and burning glare from the man's eyes scared the hell out of him. The other three were scary too, but this man gave him a look like he could disembowel him with only his eyes. Ingram was trying to make sounds come out of his throat when he heard another voice that sent shivers down his spine.

Greg, William, Jeff, Mark, Winds and Inspector Paul Davidson were approaching quickly after getting off the elevator and hearing Ed's cold's words. They all took in the situation and read that something had happened.

Inspector Davidson's voice was demanding as he stated "Ingram, what the hell did you do now?"

Paul was tired of being saddled with Ingram. He had written him up numerous times for infractions and lack of judgement. But Ingram managed to be Teflon and remain employed because his father was on the review board and managed to smooth things over for Ingram when any other officer would have been fired for the same infraction. It ticked him off that Ingram got away with being a piss-poor officer.

Ingram turned and stammered out "I was just getting a statement from Mrs. Braddock and she flew off the handle at me and started yelling at me to get out. If you ask me that shows that she has something to hide. We need to take her in and interrogate her. She is our prime suspect for murder."

Paul clenched his fists and repeated in his head 'you cannot hit the idiot, you cannot hit the idiot'. He drew in a deep breath and saw the looks on the other men. They were ready to murder Ingram for that asinine statement.

His voice rigid Paul Davidson stated "Ingram you just accused a highly decorated and respected police constable of murder. Do you have any idea who you were speaking to?"

Ingram shook his head slightly but ventured "Mrs. Braddock, the constable's wife."

Davidson nearly snorted at the man's ignorance and continued "Well let me explain it to you then. You just insulted Constable Juliana Callaghan-Braddock, recipient of the Law Enforcement Professional of The Year award for exceptional service. Jules is member of the elite SRU team that prevented seven of ten bombs from exploding in Toronto that a terrorist bomber planted last year. She has more integrity in her little pinkie than you have in your whole damned body."

Unable to keep the contempt from his voice, Davidson continued "You have insulted not only her but the entire police force with your asinine assumption. I'm sure with the statements that will be forthcoming from General Braddock, Superintendent Plouffe, SRU Commander Holleran and a dozen other officers of Toronto's SRU force and those from assorted military officers from the Army, Navy and Air Force you will have finally effectively killed your own career."

Then he demanded harshly "What were you even doing in that room? You were told to get statements from the nurses only."

Ingram looked at all the angry men surrounding him and he got incensed. He said defensively "I was doing my job. The nurses said the wife was up here alone. She had motive and opportunity to murder Ms. Tocci."

Davidson clenched his jaw a moment but then ground out "We have not determined if it was murder you idiot. The doctor treating her suspects it was an allergic reaction to medication. We need to wait until an autopsy is completed to determine cause of death. You are off this case. Go back to the café and do not speak to anyone else. If you so much as open your mouth to order coffee, I will slap you with every violation of procedures that I can find that even remotely apply. You got that Ingram?"

Officer Ingram dully nodded as he slowly backed away from the murderous glares. He would retreat from this battle but he would be calling his father and Davidson would pay dearly for what he had done here today. Seething, Ingram headed for the stairs to go to the café and wait.

Davidson blew out a long-suffering breath as he turned and faced the others "I'm so sorry about that. Ingram is a screw up with a highly-placed father that keeps covering for him. I've tried for months to get reprimands to stick to him for bad judgement and poor procedures. But every time it ends up with the review board, it gets swept under the damned rug."

Ed stated "Well I don't think he will get away with this one."

They all bobbed their heads in agreement.

Greg said quietly "Let me go in and see if Jules is okay. She might need a little space."

Mason pulled a chair over and sat down "I sticking right here. If that idiot tries to get into that room again he will have to get past me."

Adam and Scott pulled over chairs too and sat down and Adam said "Ditto."

As Greg quietly entered the room, William said to Davidson "What else do you need from us to wrap up your investigation?"

Davidson stated "It would help if you could give me information on this Major Plouffe. I need to see if I can corroborate any of Yawls statements about him."

William raked his hands through his hair and said "Major Plouffe's military record is sealed. I will have my analysts see if they can connect Yawls' claims of times and places of abuse. But I believe the man. There are things that I am unable to share due to the classified nature of Plouffe's service but fit with what Yawls is claiming about the Major. If there is anything to share, I will have it forwarded to your office."

Davidson nodded then said "Other than that, when Officer Richman is finished taking the statements of the three remaining constables, you all will be free to go. As soon as I am able to, I will update you on the cause of death. I'm told it will take a few days before we know exactly how she died."

Then he turned and headed downstairs. Davidson was still pissed at what Ingram had done and said. But the bright side was now it was highly probably that Ingram would either be fired for conduct unbecoming or at least busted down to traffic cop. Something of this magnitude his father would not be able to sweep under the rug. Ingram's Teflon had worn too thin and this would stick like the honey stuck in Tocci's hair.

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – Yawl's Room**_

Abner sat quietly as the doctor waited for him to speak. He was tired and wanted to go to sleep. The quiet was nice though. Melpomene was no longer screaming. She was dead. A smile crossed his face as he thought of that.

In heavily accented English, Dr. Janashia asked quietly "Abner can you tell me why you are smiling?"

Abner looked at the pretty, soft spoken doctor. He liked her green eyes. They looked kind. She was quiet and did not shrill at him like Melpomene did.

He answered "She's dead, just like the Major. That is a good thing. She cannot hurt Sam now." Then his face darkened and he said "I hurt Sam. He was innocent like me but I hurt him. I'm sorry I hurt him. He was nice to me."

Nodding Nadya responded quietly "Yes you did hurt him. It is good that you recognize that. It is also good that you feel remorse for your actions."

Abner's eyes teared up and he looked down and found his sheets very interesting as he said "Sam told me that Plouffe raping me did not make me less of a man and that I would begin to get better if I talked about it." His sad eyes looked up into kind green ones and he asked "Was he right?"

A long-ago memory flittered through Nadya's mind. Her life was so different today than it had been ten years ago. She had lived three very disparate decades of her life.

Her first decade, actually eleven years, were idyllic. She had a wonderful childhood up to that point. Two loving parents and a big sister. Nadya had the childhood that so many children can only dream of.

The second decade of her life showed her the darkest side of humanity. She was debased in a way that no human should be. During that decade, she only survived, barely. Nadya thought she would die as a sex slave in that bordello. But then a miracle happened and she was saved from that life.

Her one choice, to approach the small guard, had changed her life so profoundly. She had been reunited with her sister. It was not all happiness, she felt so much pain when she learned that her parents died. Especially when she learned her father had committed suicide because he felt responsible for her being abducted.

But the love of her family, Tatiana, Andro, Luka and Elsa, helped her rebuild her life. She also had the help of a special friend, good counselors and therapists. It was the help of those therapist that inspired her to go into psychology.

She worked so very hard on her education. She and Luka studied together often in the first few years because she had not been to school since she was eleven and Luka was twelve. But then she soon outpaced him.

Her special friend Anastasia helped her a lot in the first few years. The first thing she did was help her to learn English. Anastasia was gifted with that ability. She also guided Tatiana and Andro to special tutors that helped her advance her education quickly. It had been years since she last spoke to Anastasia.

It was going on six years now since she last spoke with her. It was right about the time she started university. Nadya had been too busy for much of anything other than studying. But she wanted to graduate in record time and start her own practice.

Tatiana and Andro ensured she had everything she needed and supported her the entire time as she focused on getting her doctorate degree in psychology. It took her nine of the past ten years to achieve her dream. For the past year, she had been a practicing psychologist that specialized in helping those who had been traumatized by abuse, assualt or abduction because she had a unique insight to that psyche.

Her clients were mostly women, but she did have a few children and men. Both women and men dealt with the fear, the shame and the rest of the complex emotional issues that came with being raped. But it seemed the men had a harder time with accepting that they could be raped. That somehow, they were less of a man for it. That was the most difficult aspect to help them with.

Instead of answering Abner, Nadya asked "What do you think?"

Abner shook his head "I don't know. I want to think it is true. He said I'm a man based on the choices I make. I've made bad choices so I don't know."

Nadya gave Abner a shy smile and said "We've all made bad choices and good choices. You made a good choice when you decided to help Sam. You do not have to decide right now. You look very tired like you could use some sleep. We will have time to talk and help you explore this. For now, how about you get some rest."

Abner nodded. "Okay. I am tired."

Standing up Nadya said "I will be by tomorrow Abner. Sleep well."

Closing his eyes Abner let his mind rest. It was quiet and calm now that Melpomene was dead. He could finally get some rest.

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – Outside Yawl's Room**_

Dr. Nadya Janashia quietly closed the door to Abner Yawls' room. She stretched her back. She had sat in that uncomfortable plastic chair for hours. She had finally managed to get Yawls to talk a little bit to her. She would take this very slowly and calmly.

She turned and saw three men sitting in the hall. Nadya blinked rapidly. Then covered her mouth with her hand. It couldn't be?

But it was. It was the gentle giant and the blonde and another blonde that looked somewhat like him, a brother maybe.

Nadya's legs shook a bit as she tentatively approached them.

Mason looked up as a lovely woman approached them. Her face was displaying some distress and he quickly asked "Ma'am are you okay?"

Scott and Adam looked at the woman and Adam said "You are the psychologist they brought in to talk to Yawls."

Nadya's did not hear Adam's comment as she looked from the giant to the blonde. Both had aged some but she would recognize them anywhere. In voice that was a little shaky, Nadya finally said "You would not remember me. But I remember both of you."

Mason and Scott turned to look at each other in confusion. Did they perhaps sleep with the same woman in the past?

Scott said politely "I'm sorry Miss, you have us at a disadvantage. How exactly do you know us?"

Adam looked on, he was amused seeing the thoughts that crossed Scott's mind. Sam would find that hilarious if Scott and Mason had slept with the same woman. He remained silent though.

Nadya answered "You saved me. Because of you two, I have a good and happy life now."

Still confused Mason said "Saved you how?"

A shy smile lit her face and she dropped her head a moment but then lifted it because she had nothing to be ashamed of. What happened to her was not of her choosing but she had chosen to survive and thrive afterwards.

Nadya looked at the blonde first and said "You were so ill. I thought you were going to die. My niece still sometimes talks about the nice men with blue eyes. She does not remember much though which is good."

Then she turned to the huge man and said "She sometimes remembers the gentle giant too. But I could never forget you. You were so gentle with Elsa that day."

She turned back to the blonde and said "And he was so gentle with you too."

Scott was shaking his head, he had no clue what this woman was talking about.

Mason however stared at the woman and he eyes began to narrow as a long ago image filtered in. So different, yet the same. Hesitantly, Mason asked "Nadya?"

A bright smile lit her face "Yes. Yes, I am Nadya. You remember me?"

Mason swallowed a lump of emotion. He nodded and said "Yes, I remember you. Without your help, we could not have done what we did."

Understanding the secrecy of their JTF2 missions, Scott turned to Mason and stated "She thinks I'm my doppelganger, doesn't she?"

"Yeah she does" he answered Scott but then said to Nadya "I am happy for you Nadya. I still will not be able to share my name with you. But I will pass along to my friends that you are well and happy. It will make them happy to hear that."

Nadya nodded understanding that what they did was secret and needed to remain that way. Anastasia had explained that to her long ago and she vowed never to divulge anything about that day. But she asked "Can I hug you?"

Mason nodded and Nadya stepped forward and hugged him tightly as she said "You all made a difference in my life and I am eternally grateful. Please let your friends know that."

Hugging Nadya back Mason responded "I will."

Nadya released the gentle giant and wiped her eyes then turned to the blonde and said "You look just like him. Are you his twin?"

Scott shook his head "No we just look a lot alike. I'll make sure he knows you are doing well. A doctor, right?"

She smiled and nodded "Yes in psychology. I mainly work with people who have been traumatized by abuse, assault and abduction." She then said "I need to be going now. I have some paperwork that needs to be submitted to transfer my patient into a proper treatment facility."

Mason grinned as Nadya gave him another quick hug and said just before she left "That one was from Elsa. Thank you for hugging and comforting her that day."

She waved and headed for the elevator.

Mason sat down and sighed. A smile played on his lips as he thought, Elsa hugged and comforted him too that day. He couldn't wait to tell Blondie and the others about this.

Adam looked at Scott and said "The twin thing with Sam has gotten you into trouble before."

Scott grinned and said "Yeah it has. It is not only Sam though. Remember when I visited you in Cold Lake, Alberta about ten years ago?"

Adam laughed "How could I forget? You were arrested and dragged out of the bar that night. Those cops actually thought you were international playboy and sleaze ball pervert Maks Gennadiyevich."

Mason whipped his head to the cousins "Maks Gennadiyevich?"

Scott grimaced as he said "Yeah, sick huh. Me, I don't see the resemblance. Makes my skin crawl to think anyone would think I looked like that pedophile."

Adam said "But it is a damned funny story."

Mason asked "Did you ever tell Blondie the story?"

Scott shrugged and said "No, come to think of it I haven't. Ten years ago, Sam was in his second year of JTF2. We didn't correspond back then. Afterwards, it never came up. I hadn't thought about it until listening to, what did you say her name was?"

"Nadya" Mason answered.

"Until I heard Nadya's Russian accent and she thought I was Sam. The combination of her accent, thinking I was Sam and the fact that Maks was Russian popped it into my head" Scott explained.

Mason asked "So what happened?"

Scott chuckled "Well for one thing I learned never to go on leave without my wallet."

.

* * *

 _ **AN:** Ducking rotten veggies and fruits from kenyancougar and purpwithapen for not telling the story in this chapter. I will tell Scott's story ... eventually. For those wondering who Nadya is or who Maks is and why Mason would whip his head towards Scott and Adam at the mention of Maks' name read Rescue of Master Corporal Samuel Braddock to find out._


	29. Joyful Tears, Blessing & Short Visits

**Joyful Tears, Blessing & Short Visits**

* * *

 _ **Four Days Later – La Dore Hospital – Sam's Room**_

William watched his son as the sedation wore off and he blinked open his eyes. He held one hand while Jules held the other. The doctor had kept Samuel sedated longer so that his lungs cleared more before they woke him. It would make his recovery easier.

Jules gently squeezed Sam's hand as his eyes blinked open and she said "Hey Sam. You are safe."

Sam blinked his eyes open and immediately began to panic as the felt something in his throat. He fought for breath. Fighting against the ventilator.

"Sam calm down. You are on a ventilator let it do the work" Jules crooned as she moved up to stroke his hair to calm him.

But her words were not making it through the residual fog in his brain.

William spoke in an authoritative tone "Samuel. Stop fighting. Relax. You are okay."

His father's stern voice cut through the fog and Sam stilled. He quit fighting the ventilator and his breathing evened out. His eyes flicked from his dad to Jules. They stayed on Jules.

He wasn't dead was the first lucid thought he had.

Jules stroked Sam's hair and said "You fought hard and you made it. Just relax now. The doctor will be in shortly and they are going to remove the ventilator."

Sam nodded but his eyes never left Jules' face. He was not dead kept running through his mind. He thought for sure he had taken his last breath after she showed up. He had fought so hard to stay conscious and breathing just to see Jules and say goodbye.

His eyes started flicking around the room. Where was she? If Jules was here, then Sadie was too.

Jules saw Sam get agitated and his eyes started roaming all over the room. It dawned on her what, or more correctly who, Sam was searching for. Jules said softly "Sam, Sadie is here. But not in the room. I didn't want her to see you until you woke completely. Sadie is here and she is safe. Nothing happened to her."

Sam relaxed again at Jules' words. He closed his eyes for a moment. Sam blinked several times as relief swept through him and tears leaked out.

Jules grabbed a tissue and wiped away the tears. She understood what Sam was feeling. Yawls had admitted to telling Sam that Sadie would be killed. That hurt to find out that Sam had been tormented that way.

William watched his son's tears and completely understood. He had been in Samuel's position numerous times. Worrying about the life of your child. No matter how old they got, a parent always worried.

He said "I'm proud of the man you are Samuel. You kept your head in unbearable circumstances. You survived. No one will ever truly know what you went through. But know that I am here for you any way you might need me son."

His comment had a double meaning. Samuel had shared a painful secret with him. William was trying to tell him no one would know. That his secret was still secret.

Sam opened his eyes, meet his dad's eyes and held them. Sam squeezed his dad's hand.

Dr. Chasseur and Charlie entered the room. Mathieu came into Sam's line of vision and said "Hello Sam, I'm Dr. Mathieu Chasseur."

Sam's eyes widened. Matthew Hunter? His eyes flicked to his dad again.

William chuckled "I know. Matthew Hunter. What are the odds? It gets even weirder Samuel. I'll tell you in a bit though."

"Let's see about getting this ventilator out. Charlie, give me a hand here" Dr. Chasseur requested.

Still out of Sam Sam's line of vision Charlie came up behind Sam and assisted the doctor in doing all the necessary checks before removing the tubing. Once the doctor was satisfied Sam was ready to breath on his own, Mathieu instructed Sam on what to do as they pulled the tubing out of his throat. Sam closed his eyes as the tube was pulled out and as a nasal cannula for oxygen was put on.

The doctor raised Sam's bed so he was semi sitting up and said "Talking will be rough at first. I want you to limit speaking for a bit."

His throat felt raw and the first breaths on his own were difficult. But after several breaths, it got easier and evened out. He opened his eyes and looked at Jules.

Sam croaked out a raspy "Jules."

Jules smiled. Sam's voice, even husky and raspy, was music to her ears. She squeezed his hand.

Charlie said "Sam Sam, a little water will help your throat. But no more talking just yet."

Sam's eyes flicked to the nurse. Only one person had ever called him Sam Sam. Charlotte Noble. Charlie.

Smiling Charlie said "Yes Sam Sam, it's me Charlie. Long time no see. We can talk later. I'm gonna get out of the way. You have a bunch of folks chomping at the bit to get in here and see you. One precious little one that I know of. You have a lovely wife and a beautiful daughter Sam Sam. I'm so happy for you."

Sam sipped a little bit of water even as Charlie handed off the cup to Jules and patted Jules on the shoulder. Charlie headed out of the room to give Sam privacy with his family. And to let the others know that he was awake and breathing on his own.

Dr. Chasseur stated "If you have any difficulty breathing you press the call button immediately. You should not be feeling any pain right now. Dr. Larrson performed a block this morning again. So, you should be set for several days. After that, the pain should be down to a manageable level with oral medications. What is your level?"

"Z.." Sam tried to say zero but his throat was on fire. Instead held up his hand with his fingers in the shape of a zero.

"Good. Good. Okay. So, you can have some visitors but let's keep it short and sweet. You still need your rest. A lot of it. Your body has been through a lot as it fought off the infection and is repairing the damage from the broken rib and the beatings. Press the call button if you need anything or if you experience any pain. I will check on you a bit later" Mathieu stated.

After the doctor left the room Jules grinned and said "I met your high school girlfriend Sam. I approve." Then she leaned down and kissed him, then whispered "I love you Sam Braddock. Sadie has been waiting for you. Are you up to seeing her?"

Sam nodded.

William went to the door and opened it "Scott, bring Sadie to me please."

All the guys milled around in the hallway. They all wanted to go in but Sam's reunion with his daughter should be private. And it should be first. Scott handed a sleeping Sadie to William.

Cradling Sadie in his arms William headed to Sam's bed.

Sam reached out for his daughter. William placed Sadie in Samuel's arms and then discreetly left the room closing the door behind him.

Tears formed again and ran freely down Sam's face "Sweet Sadie" he rasped out as he caressed her little face.

Sadie's eyes slowly opened. Her big brown ones found her daddy's blue ones. Sadie's eyes lit with recognition. She babbled sleepily "Dada dada da dada dada."

Sam was so overjoyed that his emotions welled up and overflowed. Sam started crying in earnest as he hugged his daughter close to his heart as she babbled to him.

Jules wrapped her arms around Sam and Sadie and held them both as tears of relief and joy flooded her eyes and coursed down her face too.

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – Hallway Outside Sam's Room**_

When William exited, every man turned to him with expectant faces. William said "Samuel is in no pain. The block worked. The doctor said to keep it to a short visit. Let's wait out here until Jules comes out and says Samuel is ready for visitors."

Greg nodded "They need a moment together as just a family."

Spike nodded but he went to stand near the door. He was never any good at waiting to see Sam. This time was no different. Well actually it was different. Sure, Sam was going to be okay, But helping to keep little Sadie occupied for the last four days brought home the fact that if Sam did die, there would be a lost little one growing up without her daddy.

Sadie had reached out for Sam every time she was brought into that room. And every time she was laid in Sam's arms, miraculously Sam's arm would wrap around her. Spike could see that even in his sedated state, somehow Sam had sensed that Sadie was near and pulled her close to comfort her. And maybe himself too, Spike thought.

Greg wandered over to Spike and asked "You okay Spike?"

Spike looked up and smiled "Yeah, now that he's awake and breathing on his own. I'm good. We just need to get him home now."

Greg grinned and said "I expect you are wanting to get home to a special someone."

Spike eyed Greg "Boss?"

Putting his hand on Spike's shoulder, Greg squeezed and said quietly "Permettetemi di essere il primo a congratularmi con lei e Winnie. Vedo che la persistenza ha vinto il giorno. Possiate voi due benedetti con un lungo e felice matrimonio."  
(Let me be the first to congratulate you and Winnie. I see that persistence won the day. May you two be blessed with a long and happy marriage.)

Spike grinned "How?"

"I'm observant. Winnie confirmed my suspicions. I've kept it to myself. That is news for you two to share when you are ready. But I am very happy for both of you" Greg answered.

Sincerely Spike said "Thanks, that means a lot Boss. Tu sei come un padre per me. La vostra benedizione è qualcosa che volevo."  
(You are like a father to me. Your blessing is something I wanted.)

Greg pulled Spike in and hugged him "Mio figlio si ha la mia benedizione sempre."  
(My son you have my blessing always.)

Ed watched Spike and Greg and wondered what they were talking about. Someday he needed to learn another language. If for no other reason than to be able to have a private conversation with someone.

He looked to the right as the door to Sam's room opened and Jules slipped out.

Jules came into the hall. She knew her eyes were red-rimmed and blood shot after the past four days and recent crying jag. But she smiled at the assembled men and said "Sam is doing well. But I'm sorry to say that he and Sadie are taking a nap together now. Sam was so tired that he did not stay awake very long. You can come in if you are very quiet. I don't want to wake either of them."

The guys nodded and then formed groups of three to go in. First up were Spike, Ed and Greg.

* * *

 _ **La Dore Hospital – Sam's Room**_

Jules headed back in with Spike, Greg and Ed. She sank wearily into her seat. The place she had kept vigil over the past days and had rarely left, only to go to the bathroom or to grab a coffee. She leaned back and allowed the guys to get closer.

Ed looked down at Sadie and Sam's arms. There was something so right about that. He said softly "Samo, glad you are doing better. Glad that tube is out. We'll get you home and then back in shape buddy."

Greg leaned on his cane as he observed Sam. Ed was right, he was glad that tube was out too and Sam was breathing on his own. Although his breath sounded a little labored it was not too bad. He remained quiet, not wanting to accidentally wake either Sam or Sadie. Both looked to be content. That was the most content he had seen Sadie since she got here.

Spike smiled as he looked at Sam and Sadie. His hallway conversation with the Boss had him thinking down the road. One day, hopefully soon, Spike would have his own little one to hold and cherish like Sam did.

He whispered "Rest easy buddy."

Then he, Ed and Greg headed out.

Scott, Adam and Mason headed in together. They gathered at the foot of the bed, not crowding him.

Adam stepped forward first. He had planned to leave two days ago, but he just couldn't. Jules had needed support and he could not leave with the image of Sam on a ventilator. He had two more days until he absolutely had to return.

He stepped close and said "I want you to rest up a bit. But when you get home, I'm gonna have a bike trail recuperation plan all ready for you. And now that Sadie is big enough, I'm gonna get you one of those trailer things you attach to the back of your bike so you can take Sadie on your rides too. Start her young and share something you enjoy with her."

As Adam stepped back Scott stepped forward. Visions of himself holding his little Anna clouded his eyes as he looked at Sam holding Sadie. Like Adam, Scott could not bring himself to leave while Sam was on the ventilator. He had another week off. It would be enough time to get Sam settled in at home. Laura and the kids would come down and help out so Jules did not need to do any cooking. Jules could concentrate on Sam, Sadie and herself.

Scott went to Jules and said "Now that Sam is awake, perhaps you could go to the bed and breakfast and get some rest yourself."

Jules shook her head "I'm fine here."

"Jules" came softly from the bed.

She was on her feet and to Sam in a flash. "I'm here Sam. Right here."

Sam smiled "Jules how long?"

"How long?" Jules asked and then realized what he was asking and replied "Four days. You were sedated four days."

His eyes closed a moment then opened and looked beseechingly into Jules' bloodshot and tired eyes "Go rest."

Jules leaned close and gently brushed the hair on his forehead "I've rested. I'm good here until you can go home."

Sam lifted his hand to the side of Jules' face and laid it there. His voice still raspy from disuse and the tubing, Sam pleaded "For me … for Sadie … go rest. Please."

Mason stepped forward and said "I'll stay with Blondie while you rest Jules. I'm well versed in taking care of him."

"I'll stay too Jules" Scott said coming up beside her.

Adam added his offer to the list too.

Jules watched Sam's eyes then she nodded "Alright then. For you I'll go take a nap at the hotel. But only a short one. Do you want me to take Sadie?"

A soft smile edged Sam's lips as he shook his head slowly "She's good here."

Jules nodded understanding.

Scott put his hand into this pocket and landed on something fuzzy. He grinned. He'd forgotten about this. Scott pulled out a yellow bunny.

He placed the bunny on Sadie arms and said "I found this at the base of the ridge. All the stuffing was gone. That was a smart way to leave a trail Sam. I got it cleaned, restuffed and sewn up. It is almost as good as new. The bunny just has a small scar is all."

Sam reached for the yellow bunny. Gratitude filled his eyes "Thanks Scott." Then he tucked the bunny close to Sadie. His lids were getting heavy and his eyes closed of their own volition.

After Sam drifted back to sleep, Jules turned and hugged Scott fiercely "Thank you. That was so sweet. That bunny has so many good memories. It is special."

Scott hugged Jules back and said "I'm glad I found it. Now, it is time for you to go rest. We'll take care of Sam and Sadie."

Jules nodded.

Adam said "I'll ask Uncle Will to take you to the bed and breakfast. Maybe you can talk him into resting too."

"Yeah, I can do that" Jules stated. Then she leaned down and kissed both Sadie and Sam and said "Sleep well my loves. I'll be back soon."

.

* * *

 _ **AN:** No I have not abandoned this story. But updates will be a bit slower as I concentrate on my Christmas stories. One a day is going to be a real challenge. So I left this one on a good note for the moment. Everyone will rest easy for a bit._


	30. Belief and Celebrations

**Belief and Celebrations**

* * *

 ** _Five Days Later - La Dore Hospital - Sam's Room_** ** _  
_**  
Sam cradled Sadie in his arms as she slept. He couldn't seem to put her down, and Sadie had been unusually quiet and cried if she was pulled from his bed. "My girl," Sam whispered as he caressed his daughter's head.

Jules leaned back in the chair. "That she is. Daddy's girl through and through."

"Jealous?" Sam asked Jules with a quirk of his brows.

"Absolutely!" Jules chuckled and stood. Coming to the bed, she carded her fingers through Sam's hair. "Though, I guess it is alright seeing as she is your daughter. Wouldn't want it any other way."

The room door opened slowly, and William popped his head in. "Up for company?"

Sam nodded and smiled as his mother walked in followed by his Aunt Ann.

Yvonne strolled to the bed and warmly smiled seeing Sam holding Sadie. She bent over and kissed his cheek. "Beautiful sight. How are you feeling?"

Taking his mother's hand and lightly squeezing, Sam answered, "Good. Ready to go home."

Yvonne glanced at the nasal cannula that still provided oxygen to Sam. He was doing world's better according to William, but to her, he still looked like he needed to be in the hospital. She kept that to herself. "Did Dr. Larsson given you any indication when you can travel home?"

Jules replied, "She said he could leave tomorrow, so long as he keeps the oxygen on." She tilted her head and eyed Sam firmly.

Ann chuckled. "I see he has been a stellar patient as always." She patted her nephew's leg. "If I were you, I wouldn't cross Jules. She has a wicked right jab."

William chuckled at the look Samuel gave Jules. He knew from the first night, years ago after Samuel had been shot in the chest, as he listened to the two of them talk that Jules was a firecracker. She was exactly what his boy needed. Jules kept him in line and ensured he took care of his health.

He stepped forward and said, "I've arranged an ambulance to take you to Dolbeau-Saint-Félicien Airport, about a thirty-minute ride. Bella's plane will then fly us all to Toronto. Jim will meet us at the airport and make sure you are all set up at home."

Sam could only shake his head slightly. His father still amazed him. "Thank you."

Yvonne beamed at her husband. William moved well beyond hiding his concern for Sam. He showed it openly now. Their relationship seemed stronger than any of his brother's relationships with their sons. Perhaps it was because both had experienced what it was like without out it. A relationship forged in adversary and stronger for it. She put her arm around William as she said, "If you will have me, I'd like to stay with you while you recover. I can help out when Jules returns to work."

Sam glanced at Jules and noted her smile and nod. Her gave his mom a bright smile. "I'd like that."

A light knock at the door had everyone looking towards it. Charlie poked her head inside. "Sam Sam, are you up to visiting with a special someone?"

He nodded, and the door opened wider. A small girl walked in holding the hand of Dr. Chasseur. Louise stared at the man in the bed, and a big smile came to her face.

Sam recognized the little girl. She was instrumental in saving his life. "Hello again."

Jules, Yvonne, and Ann backed up from the bed to give the little girl access. Louise walked forward with no fear or hesitancy. She took his hand. "My Sammy helped me draw the picture of you." She quickly glanced at her dad and bit her lower lip. "Sorry, I'm not supposed to talk like that."

The 'my Sammy' startled Sam a moment, but he recovered rapidly and squeezed Louise's hand. Whether he should or not, he said, "I still talk to my little sister and my best friend. Sometimes I hear them talking to me, too. It's good to remember the ones we love. Thank you for helping to find me."

Louise's eyes opened wide. "Your sister Sara and brother Matt are nice."

Everyone's eyes turned to Louise.

Sam swallowed a lump in his throat. "How do you know their names?"

Chewing her bottom lip, Louise said more than she should. She glanced at her dad and wondered if she would get in trouble.

Mathieu Chasseur took a knee in front of his daughter. "Louise?"

Her eyes darted around and down. "Sorry, papa. I know I'm not supposed to talk like that."

Pulling his daughter to him, Mathieu hugged her. "Poppet, it is okay. How did you know the names?"

Louise peeked up at her dad and then over to Sam. "My Sammy said that Matt and Sara have a connection with Sam like I have with my Sammy. It's special. He told me about Sara and Matt and how they watch over him, like my Sammy watches over me."

Jules and Sam locked eyes. Sam smiled when he saw Jules smile. In a rational mind, what Louise said didn't make sense, yet they both felt the truth of it.

Sam said, "Louise." He waited until she looked at him. "I believe you."

Mathieu hugged his daughter close again. "I can't explain it, but I believe you too, poppet." He stood and lifted his daughter with him.

Emboldened by her father's and Sam's words, Louise peered at Sam. "My Sammy says that you need to take better care of yourself because you are running Matt ragged and his feathers are all falling out."

The room erupted in laughter.

Sadie blinked open her eyes, startled by the laughter. Her eyes landed on her daddy, and she promptly started babbling, "Da da da da dada."

Sam hugged his daughter close reveling in her latest sound. Yeah, it was time to take better care of himself. He had two special ladies who depended on him. His eyes moved to Jules, his beauty of life, and he gave her a lopsided grin. His life was great.

* * *

 ** _One Week Later - Sam's and Jules' Home  
_**  
Free of the oxygen, at last, Sam shuffled to Sadie's bedroom to peek in. The corners of his mouth lifted as he listened to his mother softly singing a lullaby to Sadie. His mom had been a so helpful the past week. He tried to help out, but with pneumonia, his lungs were knocked for a loop. Breathing had almost felt as bad as after he was shot years ago.

Team One and Team Three had been rotating checking up on him in the last week too. Actually, his home was a veritable spinning door of visitors. Jim stopped by daily to listen to his lungs. Blaze, Winds, and Mason each showed up twice. Scott, Adam, Jeff, Kyle, and Zach all showed up. The Boss came by each day after his classes, too. The only one missing was his father, but he had an important security summit to attend.

Sam quietly closed the door and continued down the hallway to the stairs. Only yesterday was he allowed out of bed. He was going stir crazy. He gripped the rail and carefully made his way down the stairs. A weird thought popped into his head. At least he didn't have to crawl up and down the stairs like he did when Jeff found him on the stairs in his parent's home. The memory was one that he cherished even though it was one of the lowest points in his life. It was representative of how much his entire family cared for him.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs he stopped and coughed a bit. The congestion had cleared significantly. His ribs barely twinged with the coughing now, mending nicely Dr. Fraser had said at his check up yesterday. He headed for the kitchen, intent on getting coffee. Luckily that had not been denied him this time.

A knock on the door had him shifting directions. He opened the door to find Spike, Ed, Wordy, and the Boss standing there with their hands full of take-out bags from Jules' favorite Chinese restaurant.

Spike's eyes danced as he bounded into the house. "Samtastic is up and walking. When did you get to lose the oxygen?"

Sam stood back while the others entered then he shut the door. "This morning. What brings you all here?"

Ed tapped him on the head lightly. "Your brain working?"

Looking at Ed strangely, Sam answered. "Yeah. But that doesn't answer the question."

"Celebration night," Ed stated and moved towards the kitchen.

Eyeing Wordy, Sam asked, "Celebration?"

The doorbell stopped Wordy from answering. Sam opened the door again to find Leah and all of Team Three standing there with more bags of food. Now he was really confused. He allowed them all to enter and as he was about to close the door he caught sight of Winnie approaching so he waited.

Jules headed down the stairs and smiled in greeting to everyone and went straight to the kitchen to organize things. Bewildered, Sam started to ask Wordy again what was up, but Rollie ushered him into the dining room and told him to sit. Very quickly everybody congregated into the dining room with plates of food and bottles of beer. Jules brought Sam a plate and a glass of tea.

Once they all found a place to sit, Sam asked, "What are we celebrating?"

Greg smiled. "One, everyone has been cleared of any wrong doing in the death of Ms. Tocci. Her death was ruled accidental due to an unknown allergy to mangos."

Ed said, "Two, no charges against Mason for knocking down a house. The structural engineer that investigated it said it was a wonder the house hadn't collapsed years before based on the rotted timbers."

Wordy grinned. "Third, the birth of my daughter Paisley. I have pictures if anyone wants to see." He held up one and showed it to everyone, getting awes from Jules, Leah, and Winnie and smiles from all the guys.

Jules brushed Sam's shoulders. "Fourth, you are off oxygen and well on the mend."

Lance beamed brightly and shared, "Fifth, Gibbson helped me arrange a new hearing for custody. I have an excellent chance of getting the fifty-fifty custody of Milo now."

Spike took hold of Winnie's hand. They shared a look deciding who should tell. Spike won. His grin was a mile wide as he said, "Winnie and I are engaged."

Whoops of congratulations rang through the house. The group celebrated long into the night. It was only when they noticed Sam and Jules both conked out on the couch that the group quietly cleaned up and let themselves out.

Once everyone was gone, Yvonne locked up the house and set the alarm. She brought down a blanket and draped it over Sam and Jules. Then she headed back up to the nursery to check on Sadie before heading to bed herself.

.

* * *

 **AN: OUTLIER: Blood, Brotherhood, and Beauty (Beauty of Life, Book 4) is NOW AVAILABLE on Amazon**

Search for 'Laura Acton' on Amazon and all four books of the Beauty of Life series will show.

 **OUTLIER Summary:**

Dan Broderick finally believed Brody's 'beauty of life' existed for him. His dad cared, his mom loved him, his blood family and unit brothers found him, and best of all Sexy Lexie wanted him! Life was great … until he crumpled to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut.

Lexa McKenna risked all she valued for a man. But Dan wasn't just any man … her heart and soul knew what her rational mind didn't. When Dan was laid low by a devastating injury, Lexa feared she'd never get the chance to figure out what could be.

Dad—one word that William longed to hear, yet accepted he wouldn't. But Daniel just called him Dad! Hope surged in General Broderick … only to be plunged into a nightmare as blood blossomed from Daniel's chest.

A Broderick invasion was poised to get Danny back … they could finally heal nineteen-year-old wounds. But then a thirty-year-old vendetta threatens to take Danny from them yet again. They will not lose him again without putting up a fight.

Dan's blood family, chosen brothers, and his beauty of life rally around to help him after a life-altering injury. Will Dan's family be able to help him recover and rejoin Alpha Team? Can Dan once again prove he is an OUTLIER and beat insurmountable odds?

The Beauty of Life series takes my original fanfiction stories and revamps them—with tons of new content and new and expanded story lines while still keeping the same heart and familiar feel of my fanfiction stories.

If you like all the details, twists, turns, and connections of my fanfiction–then you'll love the books—they're filled with them.

If you're a JAM fan become a LAN fan – come fall in love with Dan and Lexa. Their relationship has all the passion of JAM with all new excitement and steaminess. The attraction is undeniable, as they found out in BELONGING. OUTLIER picks up where books 3 stopped and there is more LAN to come.

If you love the Team, the General, the Broderick family, Blaze, Patch, Winds, Mason, and the rest of the cast of characters, you should enjoy the new Beauty of Life series—they get more time than before.

The first four books in my Beauty of Life series are available as both ebooks or paperbacks on Amazon. If you have Kindle Unlimited you can read them for FREE, too.

\- **FORSAKEN** : On the Edge of Oblivion (Beauty of Life, Book One)

\- **SOLACE** : Behind the Shield (Beauty of Life, Book Two)

\- **BELONGING** : Hope, Truth, and Malice (Beauty of Life, Book Three)

\- **OUTLIER** : Blood, Brotherhood, and Beauty (Beauty of Life, Book Four)

\- _Work in Progress:_ **PURGATORY** : Bonds Forged in Hellfire (Beauty of Life, Book Five)

You can visit Amazon and search for LAURA ACTON in books to read the first few chapters of each book with their look inside feature.

Come peek into the lives of Daniel Broderick, Lexa McKenna, Jon Hardy, Nick Pastore, Loki Baldovino, Bram De Haven, Ray Palomo, Brody Hunter and the rest of your favorite characters (General Broderick, Yvonne, the Broderick cousins, Blaze, Mason, Patch, Winds, etc.). Delve into a complex world of brave men and women riding a roller coaster of emotions and danger. Explore the nature of relationships and bonds developed, tested, and strengthened in the face of adversity as they seek to find the beauty of life.


End file.
